Inked in Mystery
by Fan de Basil de Baker Street
Summary: Bendy is a little Toon Devil who suddenly went crazy to such an extent that he attacked his Creators before being locked in his studio which has since been haunted. At least... that's what his legend says! Aiden, Heckle and Jeckle's young son, decides to lead his little investigation by going to search in the studio... but something is wrong in this whole story.
1. Prologue

**Inked in Mystery**

 _Summary:_

Crossover Bendy / Terry Toons / Disney Toons / Looneys Toons alias the ToonVerse (universe like 'Who Framed Roger Rabbit?')

Bendy is a little Toon Devil who suddenly went crazy to such an extent that he attacked his Animators before being locked in his studio which has since been haunted. At least... that's what his legend says! And since, all the Toons fear him!

Aiden the talking magpie, Heckle and Jeckle's young son, decides to lead his little investigation by going to search in the studio... but something is wrong in this whole story. Has Bendy really become a Mad Monster? Or is he just the victim of a terrible threat that still hangs over ToonTown?

* * *

 **Prologue :**

« _Not so long ago, when Humans were looking for a way to entertain their kind, men and women began to draw little black and white characters to make them live beautiful adventures to amaze the audience... when the characters began to come to life through the power of Imagination of their designers. Those new beings were named Toons and their creators were called the Animators!_

 _Many studios were formed, creating their own Toons who lived their own adventures or made children laugh with gags. Among the most famous, there was Bendy the Dancing Demon. He was a little Toon with a very childish personality who had everything to be happy: a brilliant career, many friends (his best friend being his episode companion: Boris the Wolf) and a studio that loved him as a family, especially his Animator Henry and the Director Joey. But alas, this flawless happiness didn't last…._

 _One day, Bendy's creator and animator left the studio to work in the neighborhood and look for new ideas for his little Devil Darling. But the little Toon didn't support the idea of being separated from a person to whom he had been very attached. He was always trying to be happy as usual and continued his gags for months... but one day, the pain of his loss became unbearable!_

 _Without anyone expecting it, Bendy suddenly got crazy. He began to absorb more ink than he needed, making him suddenly terribly violent and aggressive. He then used his control over the ink to invade the studio, forcing the animators and the director to flee... but he continued to attack them, forcing the other humans to act and try to calm him in vain. Joey decided to cut the ink in order to weaken Bendy but, with all the ink he had absorbed, he was still very strong. The Animators managed to lock the crazy Toon into the studio, letting him screaming in rage._ »

* * *

 _August 1959 :_

The scene (which until then showed Bendy's studio and his crazy attack) suddenly changes to show a 1950s child's room. Sitting on the floor were two Toons kids... well, a Toon child and a half-Toon kitten. The pure Toon is a small magpie with a yellow beak, black plumage except for his belly which is gray. The kitten, meanwhile, has white hair, beige-gray tiger fur on the hind legs, tail, half of his belly, on the ears, and a bit behind on the edges of the cheeks, his feline face appearance and his arms (devoid of fur but armed with claws like cats) are Caucasian skin color, the scleras are yellow and his irises blue. While the chick wears no clothes (being a Toon, he wasn't obliged to wear any), the little Tunman* wears a red t-shirt and brown shorts.

In front of them stands the father of the chick: Heckle, one of two talking magpies from TerryToons Studios! Today, he takes advantage that his husband isn't there to have a face to face with his son, little Aiden, and his friend-kitten, Keffan, who is the adopted son of SourPuss and Gandy Goose. The chick's mother wasn't there and, judging that his boy is old enough, the magpie had decided to tell him the legend of Bendy, the Toon Demon! While little Keffan seems frightened, paralyzed by fear, Aiden seems fascinated.

« Since that day, no one has visited this studio which remains closed. » Heckle says, looking menacing. « The few who have dared to enter in it have either never come out again, or have been found in an atrocious state close to Death. Bendy seems to attack only Humans but his madness is uncontrollable! » he continues, raising his voice, making Keffan jump. « Some stormy nights, the wind carries Bendy's screams to ToonTown! Despite all these years of forgetfulness, Bendy is still alive, waiting for his time, hidden in the shadow of his once glorious studio! » Heckle finished.

While Keffan is frozen on the spot, visibly terrorized, Aiden is passionate.

« **Wow!** » he marvels, surprising his friend who stares at him as if he is mad. « Is it true, dad? »

« But of course it's true! » smiled the magpie, amused by the look of his son, before resuming a threatening tone. « And as soon as he gets free, ToonTown will end under his anger, engulfed by his ink and nothing will stop him! »

Aiden smiles, amazed (much to his father's surprise) when ...

« **Heckle!** What did we say about telling scary stories to kids? » Jeckle scowls as he enters the room.

Heckle jumped (for he didn't heard his companion returned) then he smiled turning to him before whistling. The other magpie glares at him and taps his foot, annoyed. Aiden refrains from laughing and then, wanting to help his father, he gets up and runs to hugs Jeckle's legs.

« Good evening mom! » He chirps, making his eyes soft.

Heckle stops laughing as Jeckle looks down at their son... but Aiden's smile and his big sparkling brown eyes calm him down. Sighing, he smiles and picks up his little one who squeezes him tightly in his little arms before kissing him on the cheek.

« You little rascal! » Jeckle smiled. « You're lucky to be so cute. »

« He's got that from me! » Heckle says, grabbing his husband by the waist before kissing his cheek.

Jeckle glares at him, seeming to say " _Wait a minute, you!_ " under the laughter of the two children. Heckle looks at him with a charming gaze, knowing that his husband couldn't stay angry with him for a long time... but for the moment, the magpie is upset!

« I thought we had agreed to not to tell these kind of stories to children! » he grumbles.

« It's just a story! Aiden is old enough to hear it. »

« Oh yes ? So you're taking care of him if he wakes up with nightmares tonight! » the magpie scowls by posing his chick down. « And Keffan? What are we going to say to Gandy and SourPuss? " _Sorry, but we scared your kid with Bendy's story while he was under our care_ "? »

« Scared? I wasn't scared! » The Tunman kitten indignantly jerks his chest.

Except that during this time, Aiden has recovered a small balloon under his bed, inflated and slips behind his friend... before releasing the balloon that deflates noisily. This ridiculous sound he has heard several times scare Keffan who jumped ruffling his fur, hissing in fear before running to hide under the bed, grunting. Aiden bursts out laughing with Heckle but the adult magpie is silenced by a nudge from his husband.

* * *

Keffan, hearing that they're laughing at him, gets out of under the bed and grunting, curling his back, ... before jumping on Aiden meowing furiously. The little magpie jumps and flies away laughing... except that his kitten friend starts to chase him all over the room, turning around the magpie parents as if they weren't there. Jeckle would like to intervene but Heckle holds him back.

« Don't you worry. » the magpie smiled. « They're just bickering . »

Keffan jumps on the bed and takes a dash, enough to reach Aiden and both roll on the ground ... and the kitten is flattened on the ground, the little magpie lying on his chest with a big smile.

« Won! » he does tweeting.

« Oh okay, huh! » The half-Toon grumbles, straightening up, dragging the chick on his lap.

Aiden smiles proudly before jumping to the floor to join his parents.

« Dad ! Mum ! What if Keffan stayed here tonight? »

« Ah! Not a bad idea, chum ! » Heckle smiled. « Like that, if he makes nightmares, it will stay between us! Gandy and SourPuss won't know! »

Jeckle looks at Heckle with a glare saying, " _Yeah, see if I didn't notice you trying to make amend._ " before sighing.

« I will warn Gandy that Keffan is sleeping here. »

Aiden leaped with joy, shouting " **YEAH!** " under the laughter of his father before Keffan jumped on him and slapped him to the ground with a small smile.

« You can't win every time, feathered ball! » he laughs as the little magpie pulls out his tongue.

* * *

 **This is the prologue of our fiction** _Encré dans le Mystère_ **on Bendy translated into English. Of course, Foxiso and I do not have any rights over him and this is only our version of the video game imagined well before the end of the game.**

 **Aiden and Keffan are two OC invented by me and my friend Foxiso.**

 **Aiden is a Talking Magpie, son of Heckle and Jeckle the Talking Magpies of TerryToons (who are in a couple and married in this fiction) born in March 1953. He is a happy boy, joker and very curious.**

 **Keffan is a half-toon kitten, half human toon half cat. He is the adopted son of Gandy Goose (another character of TerryToons) and the best friend of Aiden, born in January 1953. His adoption is more fully described in Foxiso's fiction on FanFiction "Heckle and Jeckle as a couple"**

 **Aiden belongs to me and Foxiso and Keffan belongs above all to Foxiso. She gave me the right to use this character so ask her or me before using Aiden or Keffan, alright?**

 **Besides, before forgetting, here are the notifications noted by ***

1: Other name of half-toons

 **Don't hesited to leave a review :) Thanks you :D**


	2. Chapter 1: Curiosity and Research

**Inked in Mystery**

* * *

 **Chapter 1 : Curiosity and Research**

Later that night, all ToonTown sleeps peacefully. Even Keffan, lying in a camp bed squeezing his stuffed toy that his official dad, Gandy, had brought back with some stuff for the night. However, a small figure come close to the kitten and, without any warning, it leaps on him. Feeling someone catching him, Keffan is about to scream... when two little hands covered with feathers gag him.

« Hush, silly! » Aiden mutters in a low voice, digging his brown eyes into his friend's blues. « You will wake my parents! »

« Are you crazy? » the kitten grumbles, pushing away his chick friend. « You want me to have a heart attack! I don't have quite the same heart as a Toon. »

« Oh come on, you're not made of sugar! » the little magpie laughs.

« And why are you still up, first of all? It's late, and at this hour, I'm sleeping! »

Keffan rolls into a ball in his blanket mumbling goodnight, wanting to go back to sleep... but Aiden pulls his ears and hair.

« Ouch! What now? » the kitten gets upset as he chases away the chick who flies off to sit on his bed.

« Tell me, would you like to see a real haunted studio? » he says, eyes twinkling with mischief.

The half-Toon freezes as he understands and stands up, as struck by lightning.

« **ARE YOU BONKERS!?** » he yells.

« Hush! » the chick scowls.

The two children are silent, listening if the magpie parents have woken up, then sigh while still being in the complete silence of the night. But the little Tunman is far from calm.

« Don't tell me that you want to go and get killed in a studio abandoned where a mad ink monster prowls! »

« It's just a story, Keffan! » Aiden smiled. « And Bendy is a Toon like the others! Having been drawn and not being born, he would have needed to be remembered and that his fans continue to watch him! It's been years since anyone has heard about him. And it's not chatter between Toons who will keep him alive! The studio is surely totally empty but nobody goes there because it serves as an example. »

Keffan frowns as he squeezes his stuffed toy... then he sighs.

Aiden was right. Apart from Born-Toons and Half-Toons, all Toons needed to be watched and remembered to keep their hearts. Only those from Disney studios had managed to escape this fate thanks to the magic of Yen Sid* and the love that Mr Disney had put in his first character, Oswald the Lucky Rabbit. Apart from them, no Drawing Toon had survived to being forgotten and the loss of his heart. Bendy must have been gone for a long time now.

« Ok, little genius! But how do we get there? » the little kitten Tunman asks.

« We wait for the night and we slip to the studio! Nothing more simple! » Heckle and Jeckle's son smiled.

« Nobody will give us the address of the studio if everyone thinks it cursed! »

The little magpie freezes and thinks.

« Damn... I didn't think about that ... » he mumbles.

Keffan laughs, amused... but quickly, Aiden looks very sad. He is disappointed because he really wants to see this haunted studio but without the address, it's impossible. Except that nobody in ToonTown can resist to this little sad face! Not even his parents and Keffan! The kitten mutters, trying to look away... but he can't help but look at his friend. Sighing deeply, he thinks on how to help his best friend... when a smile lights up his feline face.

« Aidy! I think I know who can give us the address! » he said, drawing a hopeful look from his friend.

* * *

The next morning, after a heavy breakfast, the two magpies went to the TerryToons Studios with the kids. As soon as they arrive, they are greeted by Gandy Goose and SourPuss (even if the cat plays the one who doesn't care).

« Dad ! » Keffan smiled, running to hold the goose in his arms.

Gandy takes his son in his arms and kisses him on the cheek. The kitten gives him a big hug before turning to the other Toon who shares his education.

« Hello, Papa Cat! » he smiled, making the jars and the two magpies laugh but making SourPuss sigh.

« Keffan ... I'm not your dad! Uncle SourPuss if you want but stop calling me ''papa''! » he growls, turning to hide his flushed cheeks and to avoid seeing Gandy's sad face.

Keffan turns to his adoptive father, intrigued. He didn't understand why his "Papa cat" refused that to call him like that when he saw that he and his dad got along well and they had the same look as Aiden's parents. And his friend had the right to call Heckle ''Dad'' and Jeckle ''Mom''. So why didn't he have the right to call his father "papa"? And why his two dads weren't married like Aiden's parents?

Gandy places his adopted son on the ground and advances towards the two magpies.

« Thanks for keeping Keffan last night. » he smiled. « I hope he wasn't too much of a handful. »

« Not at all. » Jeckle answers. « A real little angel. »

« Anyway, these two chums are glued to each other. » Heckle laughed, ruffling his son's feathers.

Jeckle slaps him on the shoulder to make him stop and then kneels in front of Aiden to re-feather his feathers.

« Can you watch them today, Gandy? » the "mum" asks after combing his chick.

« Oh no ! » the goose exclaims. « SourPuss and I need help on Mighty's short, and even though we have no more new episodes to do*, the work of Toons never stops. » he said, shrugging his shoulders.

« So who's going to keep the little ones? We have an episode to turn too. » Jeckle worries.

« Mum ! » Aiden grumbles. « We're big boys now! I'm almost 6 years old and Keffan already has them! »

« Of course you're getting older boys. » Jeckle grinned as Heckle refrained from giggling. « But daddy and I prefer to know that you are under the supervision of a grown up. »

« Dimwit is resting today but he's at the studio. » SourPuss says. « We can always ask him if he can watch our two lads! »

Aiden and Keffan sulk but, as soon as their parents turn their backs, they look at each other with a small smile and wink at each other. Until now, they didn't know who the baby-sitter was going to be, so being under Dimwit's watch was going to arrange them for their business.

* * *

After their children have promised to be obedient and listen to Dimwit, the parents went to work thinking of their children under good supervision... but it without counting on the malice of the chick and the kitten. As soon as their parents leave, the two boys turn to their nanny of the day with a big smile.

« Can we play hide-and-seek, Dimwit? » the Tunman asks, forcing the dog to look down at him.

« Um... » he stutters.

« Please... » Aiden adds, making puppy eyes.

The dog Toon would like to argue... but like the others, he can't resist the eyes of the little magpie.

« Okay ... » he smiled, softened.

« **You count!** » the kids exclaim in chorus before moving away.

« **And count to 100!** » Aiden shouts before disappearing down the hall.

Dimwit has a little trouble recording what just happened so quickly (a little too fast for him) then he shrugs and sticks against a wall to start counting.

Keffan and Aiden refrain from giggling before running out of the studios to return to ToonTown. Greeting the Toons they meet, the children go in front of a big house with some parts damaged (by the many missed tests of its owner's bad luck) and where many ACME cases are scattered outside.

« Are you sure he'll get what we're looking for? » Aiden asks.

« Yes. » Keffan says. « I often asked Papa Cat why Wile E. Coyote had such a big house when he was a ''loser''* in his episodes and he told me it was because he was a doctor in Toonology. »

« In too no what? »

« Toonology! Papa Cat told me it was a science that traces the origin of all Toons! Even though it is haunted now, Coyote certainly has a folder with the address of Bendy's studio! »

« Hush! » Aiden grumbles, knowing that if we hear them pronounce this name, everyone will be afraid.

Keffan rolls his eyes, finding ridiculous that his bird friend is so nervous. Bendy was certainly a Devil Toon who turned into a Demon full of ink, but certainly not such a terrifying threat to ToonTown. After the "Roger Rabbit" case, the Toons had seen the worst.

«Well! Do you want your address or not? » The kitten smiled.

* * *

Coyote is reading a book (especially looking for a way to use a good gag in his next episode) when someone knocks on the door. Intrigued because he doesn't expect any visit, he puts his book on the table and goes to open the door... to see a small Tunman he has already seen. The little guy smiles, hands behind his back and looks innocent.

« Hello Mr Wile E. Coyote! » he greets innocently.

« Keffan, son of Gandy Goose. » the canine smiled. « What can I do for you? »

« Well... in fact, I was wondering about the TerryToons studios, and as my Papa Cat told me you were an expert in Toonology, I knew it was you I had to look for. »

Coyote raises his eyebrows a bit (especially amused by the nickname that the kitten gives to SourPuss) then he turns to take the folder he has on TerryToons Studios, worrying Keffan for a few seconds. Luckily, the coyote doesn't notice the little magpie who has crept into his house through the back window and returns to the kitten as he flips through the pages.

* * *

Aiden sighs as soon as Coyote leaves the room and flies to the folders. All are classified by studios and oldest to newest. The chick goes to the top of the shelves and begins to search the small files (those he can move in one wing) but as none of them mentions Bendy, he settles down and starts to look at the bigger ones.

« Not that one, not that one... » he mumbles, flipping through quickly. « Oh come on! If I have to do all the shelves, I will never get it! »

Suddenly, he sees a folder placed in balance on the others. It isn't very thick but very dusty. As if we had filled this file out of curiosity but that it didn't interest anyone. Aiden casts a quick glance to the door to see if Keffan is still distracting the Looney Tune and flies to the folder. He perches on a bigger one and try to pull it out... but when he manages to release it, the strength is so great that he falls, dropping the two folders with him.

* * *

The sudden crash startled the other two Toons (well... the adult Toon and the little half-Toon) and stopped Coyote's explanation.

« What's going on? » he wonders as he starts to turn around to see inside when...

« **And the first cartoons of Dad!?** » Keffan exclaims, stopping him immediately. « When was the first time it was turned? And Papa Cat, was he always with him? »

« The first episode of Gandy Goose? Wait, I have it here... Oh, that's it! Gandy appeared for the first time in " _Gandy The Goose_ " in March 1938. And for SourPuss, he only appeared in 1939 during the episode " _The Owl and the Pussyca_ t" and since then... »

Keffan sighed with relief as he listened to the Looney Tune explaining to him the origins of his parents and discreetly watched over Aiden's research. The young bird shakes his head to chase the stars around and then stands up. Luckily, the folder didn't fell far from him. The little magpie opens it and starts reading the slightly yellowed pages, reading names such as Joey Drew or Boris the Wolf when ...

« Bendy! Yeah! » he exclaims in a low voice.

It's finally the good folder! Smiling, he returns at the beginning and retrieves the information sheet of the studio (where we can read the name of the director(s), its dates of creation and the date of the first cartoon made and shown as well as the exact address.) Aiden catch a notebook under his feathers (thanking the fact that his father taught him to master his hammerspace ability) before copying the address. Once it's done, he puts the paper back in its place, closes the folder and flies out of the window before running to the front steps to get his friend.

« Hello Mr. Coyote! » he greets, tumbling down suddenly. « Keffy! Mighty is been looking for us for 5 minutes! If we don't go back to the studios, he will find us and we will be scolded! » he said with a wink.

« Oh right! Goodbye, Mr. Coyote! » Keffan shouts as he walks away with Aiden. « And thanks again for the info! »

The Looney looks at them, intrigued, ... then he smiles shaking his head. Closing the door, he returns to the living room to store the TerryToons folder ... when he sees two folders on the floor.

« What? So that's what made all this noise? How did that fall anyway? »

He arranges these folders... when he notices the small folder left on the ground. Juste with the name on it, a shiver runs through his body.

« Brr... if it wasn't for science, I would have destroyed this folder a long time ago. » he mumbles, taking it to store it safely at the top of the shelf.

He doesn't think to check if the documents inside are always tidy. This folder gave him too much goosebumps (a shame to have those to the coyote).

* * *

A little further, Keffan and Aiden stop.

« So ? Do you have it? » the kitten asks.

« You take me for a beginner, Keffy? Admire the artist! »

The little magpie takes out his notebook and hands it to his friend.

The page looks blank ... but when Aiden tips it, the address magically appears.

« Cool! » the Tunman smiled, admiring the notebook as happy as his friend.

« Uncle Gandy has never done as well as giving me this notebook on my birthday! So, are we going now? »

« Maybe not today! The parents will notice if we're going for a short time and don't come back now. »

« You're right ... » muttered the tooned chick, putting his notebook in his hammerspace. « At day, parents or any Toon could see us… you know what? We're going to convince Mom that you had nightmares on Bendy during a nap! That way, he'll convince your dads that you're still sleeping at home tonight and, as soon as they sleep, we run there. »

« **But you're crazy!** » the kitten gets upset by chasing a lock of his white hair. « At night, it's even more risky to see a monster! »

« Sissy! » the magpie mocked.

« Hey, I'm not a sissy, bird brain! »

Aiden begins to flap his wings, cackling like a chicken and avoiding the annoying strikes of Keffan's claws.

« **Ok ok, stop!** » The kitten yells, forcing his friend to stop. « We'll go tonight then. »

The young bird starts to jump of joy, squealing... but the little Tunman has the impression that this is only the beginning of trouble.

* * *

 **Chapter 1 ended :) Here are the searches of Aiden and Keffan to find Bendy's studio. But what will they find there?**

 **Ah! Here are the notifications noted ***

2 * Sorcerer of the " _Sorcerer's Apprentice_ " in Fantasia who also appears in "Epic Mickey"

3 * The episodes of Gandy Goose stopped in 1955.

4 * "Loser" in the sense that he can not catch Road Runner

 **Here! : D see you soon and please don't forget to leave a comment :)**


	3. Chapter 2: The Haunted Studio

**Inked in Mystery**

* * *

 **Chapter 2 : The haunted studio**

That evening, Keffan was still sleeping at Heckle and Jeckle's house. The two magpies managed to convince Gandy that it didn't bother them to keep the kitten and, like that, he could play with their son. At bedtime, Jeckle watches Heckle caring for the little ones and play with them.

« You know, kids. If I told you the story of Bendy, it wasn't to scare you. It's just a legend we tell Toons to remember that you have to be careful with the ink. » the magpie apologizes.

« I wasn't scared, dad! And if Bendy arrives, I'll hit him in the nose! » Aiden exclaims, leaping on his bed, hitting the air with his little fists.

Both parents laugh, amused and moved, while Keffan rolls his eyes with a small smile.

« Of course, sweetheart! » Jeckle smiled as he go in the room, grabbing his boy before bedding him. « But now it's time to sleep. »

Aiden doesn't mind and lets Heckle cover him with his blanket before both parents kiss him at the same time, each on one cheek. While their chick rolls in his blankets smiling, Heckle leaves the room while Jeckle kisses Keffan on the forehead.

« If you ever need anything, don't hesitate to call, Keffan. Especially if it's a nightmare. »

« No problem, Uncle Jeckle. » the kitten smiled, squeezing his stuffed toy.

The two adult magpies smile at the children before closing the door by turning off the lights.

* * *

The little ones sleep a little and, around 11:00 pm, Aiden's alarm clock rings. The little magpie turns it off almost immediately to avoid waking his parents and, reassured by hearing no noise in the house, he gets up and gets out of bed.

« Keffy! It's time ! » He whispers, jumping on Keffan.

The Tunman (who was sleeping soundly) jumps down on all fours, ruffled fur and haggard eyes. It's his friend's laughter that brings him back to reality, making him blush with embarrassment and anger.

« Aidy, you're exaggerating! I asked you to wake me up gently! » the kitten grumbles, straightening up on his feet.

« But when you sleep, you're Sleeping Beauty! » the chick chuckle before flying to his bed to recover the notebook hidden under his pillow. « Are you ready ? »

« Can I say no? »

« No ! »

« Well, I'm ready then ... » the half-Toon sighs.

* * *

Even though it was a busy city by day, ToonTown could be strangely quiet at night. Of course, we could find some roaming Toons and some neighborhoods were still very active. But in the neighborhood that leads to Kansas City (the place where Bendy was*), it's flat calm! The entrance to the city has been unused for years, overgrown with weeds and some wood boards blocking the tunnel. But for the small sizes of Aiden and Keffan, it isn't those boards that will stop them. The little magpie slips in with a smile and no problem but his kitten friend follows him without much enthusiasm. The dark tunnel worries him too... but Aiden is determined to go to the end.

« Do you know that you're a mad Toon? » the kitten mumbles.

« And you, you know you're too down-to-earth for a Toon? Your human side is really tough! »

Keffan growls at this remark.

Although he knows he is half human, he hated this part of him. As soon as he was old enough to understand (and especially because he asked many questions about his birth), Gandy had told him that he had been found abandoned in the trash near the studios. Keffan knows (by some questions he had asked to his Papa Cat and Coyote) that his real father was a Toon, that simply didn't know of his existence. The one he held responsible was his biological mother! The Human who gave him life before abandoning him like a trash in the garbage! He had always seen himself as a Toon and since he knew the truth, he was angry with his human mother and hated being reminded of his human side.

Aiden turns to him, saddened to see him in this state ... then sighs.

« Sorry, Keffy... I didn't think... it was a joke ... »

« I know, Aidy ... and anyway, you can't help it. » the kitten smiled.

The little magpie then jumps around his friend's neck to comfort him. The two friends huddle together to bring comfort to each other before continuing.

* * *

At the end of the tunnel, the two children fall into a deserted street, abandoned by all. They come out and see a building far from the city, obviously old and abandoned. It is even a miracle that it still stands.

« It's here ! » Aiden exclaims, smiling.

« Brr ... no surprise that after seeing it, the studio was told to be haunted... » Keffan trembles.

Both children make sure they aren't followed and that they are alone before running to the studio. Aiden stands on the tip of his paws to open the door ... when his frightened friend catches his hand.

« Are you sure you want to enter in? You've seen it up close, that's enough... »

« No way, I want to see it, even from the inside! » the little magpie indignantly, forcing the kitten to release him before opening the door.

The door creaked horribly because of the hinges not used for years and the two children went in. They ended in a dusty corridor full of cobwebs. Many posters cover the walls, announcing the release of an episode of Bendy. There are at least three different posters in this area: " _Little Devil Darlin'_ ", " _The Dancing Devil_ " and " _Sheep Song_ " where a certain Boris the Wolf was also featured. Even ink leaked from the ceiling. They continued forward as they entered into what appeared to be a lobby. An old projector is still functioning besides a desk covered with sketches. Aiden grabs one and looks at it. It's a little black and white devil with a big smile and a bow tie and white gloves. Moreover, this little mascot can be seen everywhere on cardboards and posters, even on some stickers.

« So that's the famous Bendy! » the magpie smiled. « He doesn't look so threatening. »

The chick stores the sketch in his notebook and continues his exploration, followed by Keffan who trembles from head to paws, not to mention the tip of his tail moving nervously. Aiden notices a little Bendy stuffed toy and he promises himself to take it when he comes out... when they arrived in a corridor with a message painted on the wall:

 **« Dreams come true... »**

« Isn't it Disney's catchphrase and slogan? » Keffan asks.

« Maybe... but he probably wasn't the first one who came up with it. » shrugged the magpie as he continued.

They kept going until they saw a room with a huge machine! The room was also surmounted by a sign: "Ink Machine"

« An ink machine? » Aiden wonders when he enters the room. « I have never seen one! »

« It's weird, a machine that big for such a small studio. But even if it was in black and white, Bendy couldn't have needed so much ink. » remarks Keffan.

* * *

His friend flew away to observe the machine from above. A big black ink stain spotted the floor under the faucet, showing that the last use had to ask a lot of ink. The kitten observes the room when...

DONG DONG !

The noise make the half-Toon jump on all fours, the fur ruffled and spitting with fear... when he finds out that it's only Aiden pecking on the pipes with his beak, chuckling at his fear. But while he's about to scream...

 **DONG ! DONG ! DONG !**

Three strikes respond to Aiden's pecking, more slowly, as if to play the clock. This time, it's too much for Keffan!

« **Aiden, you bird brain!** This time you put us in an awful mess! We are in danger in this forsaken studio! »

« In danger? Pff! I walk on the wild side, Keffan. I laugh in the face of danger! Hahaha! » the chick said, proudly, pumping up his chest as he had already seen his father do.

Suddenly, a laugh echoes in the silence of the studio and the ground starts to shake. Aiden is already terrified by the laugh but when he looks down, he sees a big ink puddle under his feet. Distraught, he takes off in a flutter of wings and takes refuge in the arms of Keffan who stays frozen in place, terrorized.

« Please, Aidy... tell me you just wet yourself... » he mumbles.

The two children observe the puddle... when a gloved hand comes out, making them jump. Then a whole body dark and dripping with ink appears sneering:

« Oh ho ho! What do we have here? »

Aiden and Keffan literally gasped as the Mickey Mouse-sized Toon came out of the ink stain. With a hand gesture, he wipes away the black ink that drips on his white face, revealing... his friendly and smiling face! Well... if you aren't in a haunted studio in front of him, you would find him friendly. The little black and white Toon walks towards the little ones and leans towards them with a big smile.

« A little tooned magpie and a little... wait a minute! » he exclaims, frowning when he sees the kitten.

He pushes Keffan, who falls back and lets go of Aiden before bumping into an object that cuts him off and makes him bleed. The little Bendy (since it's really him) grimaces, disgusted.

« **Yuck!** A Tunman! What is a bastarded creature like you is doing with a real Toon? **And in here more than anyplace else !?** » he yells, visibly furious.

The two children observe the Toon, confused. Is it really Bendy? Shouldn't the Toon have disappeared by being forgotten by all? How could he be here? The gossip on him is enough to keep him alive?

« Are you ... Bendy? » Aiden asks, intriguing the little devil.

« You know my name ? » he was surprised. « How can you know me, chick? It's been 30 years since everyone forgot me! »

« **30 years !?** » the two children gasped.

They were only 6 years old and they already felt like they lived an eternity! And Bendy was locked up alone in this dark place for 30 years?

The little Devil must have noticed that they didn't know all the details, so he smiles (in a way that scares Keffan) when leaning towards them again.

« And yes, the little tips! 30 years ! It's long, huh? But you know what's the worst? All of this is because of these traitors and liars of humans! »

Anger seems to be invading Bendy to the 'human' word and his body seems to be melting. He even grunts, scary both children. He then stands up, staring at the little ones who are horrified to see the ink pouring down his face and his eyes turning bloody red.

« I hate humans... and their bastards too! » he growls before snorting. « On the other hand, there now, I would have nothing against a good sandwich! **A "tunman" fish sandwich!*** »

* * *

In a frightening roar, he rushes after the children who scream in terror. Aiden flies and Keffan jumps to the side, narrowly avoiding the demon who crashes against the wall in a splashing sound, leaving only a big stain where he has bumped. The children began to run away when the little magpie is caught and pulled back, slowing down his friend who looks for him... before finding Bendy hanging from the ceiling, his demon tail holding one of the beams of the building, with Aiden held by a paw.

« How cute ! I haven't noticed it! The little birdy who is friends with a little kitty! »

« I'm not a birdy! **I'm a magpie!** » grumbles Aiden pecking at his hand with his beak in hope of escaping.

Bendy laughs because of the tickling but refuses to let go of the chick who starts to flap his wings as hard as possible in the hope of freeing himself... when the devil loses his hold with a smile.

« **Wow !** » the chick exclaimed, carried away by his own strength.

He lands on the ground and rolls like a ball until he bangs hard on the wall, summoning for the second time of the day the stars around his head. Bendy bursts out laughing and falls to the ground, carried away in the hilarity that he even bangs his fist on the ground. Keffan runs to rescue his friend and glares at the little devil.

« **Hey ! Inky thing!** » he growls furiously, stopping the demon's laughter.« Why do you pick on the little ones when you can pick on someone of your own size? »

« Oh yeah ? Like ... you? » Bendy said with a terrifying smile.

« Oops ... » Keffan mutters, lowering his ears, anger being replaced by fear.

Aiden just has time to chase the stars away that he sees Bendy jumping on them. The children scream and run away to escape, forcing the devil to run into the wall once again. The little ones are about to flee further away when Bendy's white face pops out of a puddle of ink.

 **BOO!**

The boys scream of horror, terrified while the inkling demon sneers out of the puddle, then run away as fast as possible to the exit. Even Aiden preferred to run on the ground because Bendy could catch him in full flight. But while they are about to open the door, the floor opens under their feet.

* * *

Screaming in horror, the two friends fall to the floor below and land on it. Before they have time to recover, Keffan feels something catching his leg and he screams when this thing pulls him back. Aiden, terrified, turns to see Bendy (now dripping with ink) holding his friend by the hind leg with one hand.

« You know what they say, kitten? » the devil grins by raising the little Tunman in front of his face. « What keeps the doctor away, is a "Halfie"* Meal a day! »

Laughing and to the horror of the children, Bendy raises Keffan up and opens a wide mouth full of sharp teeth. The half-Toon meows and struggles to escape and Aiden panics, not knowing what to do,... before screaming at the edge of tears:

« **STOOOP !** »

Bendy stops dead and looks down at the little magpie Toon.

Heckle and Jeckle's son trembles with fear but, retaining the little courage (or madness) that remains in him, he begs:

« **Don't eat him, please!** Keffan is my best friend! He may be a half-Toon but he has nothing to do with humans! He has a Toon dad who loves him so much! You're a Toon too, Bendy! **You cannot kill a child of Toons and break a family!** »

« A Toon family with a Tunman? **Ha!** » the master of the studio sneers, halfway between amusement and anger. « You think of me that foolish? The Tunmans are nothing but filth like Humans! **All liars!** »

« **NO!** I'm telling you the truth, I swear to you ! Look, it's on my birthday this last March! »

Aiden takes out a photo from under his feathers, from his hammerspace, and hands it to Bendy.

Still holding Keffan with one hand, the demon takes the picture with the other and observes it carefully. The little magpie is surprised to see him calm down to the point where he almost seems to cry by the sight of the picture where we see Aiden with his two parents and Keffan who smiles, hugged by his dad and SourPuss.

Bendy starts to breathe quickly, as if holding back his tears ... then he throws the Tunman grunting. Aiden immediately helps him back on his feet and the two boys watch the demon before them. He growls, breathes hard and seems to fight tears of black ink that still flow on his cheeks ... before he stands up, shouting to the children.

« **What are you still doing here?** Get out of here before I get mad for good! » enrages Bendy .

« But ... we ... we don't know the way out... » Aiden stammers, keeping his eyes on the devil.

The master of the studio groans as he walks towards the back of the room and opens a door. Behind, a staircase that leads upstairs.

« Here ! » he grumbles. « This staircase leads to the upper studio, near Henry's desk, not too far from the exit! Now leave! »

Aiden and Keffan look at each other, not knowing if they should trust him ... but Bendy is not patient.

« **ARE YOU DEAF OR WHAT?** » he shouted as he started dripping again. « **I SAID LEAVE! GET OUT OF HERE! GET OUT !** »

Keffan jumps and catches Aiden before running to the stairs. The little magpie runs but without much conviction. Something in Bendy's behavior intrigues him. The Devil screams with rage and pain as he breaks the furniture, obviously furious. Arrived at the top of the stairs, Keffan rushes towards the exit, avoiding the gaping hole, and lets go of the chick to open the door.

* * *

The two children run away, returning to ToonTown as quickly as possible, allowing themselves to breathe once they have returned to known territory.

« Oh for cartoons sakes! » gasps Keffan, passing a hand through his hair. « I think we really saw worse than Judge Doom and his Dip! »

« How do you know? » Aiden shrugged. « We weren't even born. And you're more afraid of a Toon full of ink than a barrel full of solvents? »

« Oh hey! You were as scared as me, big dumb! » the Tunman gets annoyed. « **And this nut case is a real monster!** »

The kitten begins to tremble with horror and nervously rubs his arms. Aiden sees that he is paralyzed.

« Brr... we're going back home hurry now! By the way for the nightmares... I think that there will be plenty tonight. »

The little half-Toon goes back shaking but Aiden turns to look towards the tunnel. He was scared, it's true ... but something told him that the dripping Toon wasn't as cruel and terrifying as he seemed to be. There was something else. But there, fear is still too much in his head. So he goes home without paying attention to the cries that resonate in the tunnel.

* * *

 **This is chapter 2 of our fiction :D**

 **Aiden and Keffan met Bendy and he was ... how to say? ... terrifying for kids! But Aiden finds his behavior strange, weird ... and you?**

 **What do you think? Is Bendy really mad? Or does he hide something? What mystery still hides this dark studio? Discover it in the next chapter :) and don't forget to leave a little comment :D it is always nice to see that what we do pleases other people.**

 **Before I forget! Here are the notifications noted ***

5* When we write the fiction, we have no idea where this studio really is (no details in the game) but we thought that Kansas City could be a place where this studio seems to be the little one who wanted to break into the big and he is isolated from others and therefore more feared by others.

6* Bendy plays on the resemblance between 'tuna' and 'tunman'

7* Another word game between 'halfie' (another name of Tunmans) and 'healthy'

 **See you soon :D**


	4. Chapter 3: A chick's curiosity

**Inked in Mystery**

* * *

 **Hi, guys! Before starting the chapter, I want to tell you that Foxiso didn't help me with the translation because of too much work she had to do. So I translated alone and I don't have an English level as good as her.**

 **If there are huge mistakes, don't hesitate to report them to me and I will correct them! In the future, I think of translate alone unless I can find another translator. so... now here is the chapter!**

* * *

 **Chapter 3 : A chick's curiosity**

The next day, after a restless night's end that woke Heckle and Jeckle several times, the two magpies and the children had gone to the studio. The parents had the episode '' _Wild Life_ '' to finish and Gandy could keep an eye on the little ones (SourPuss being more useful than him for the shooting of the day). The magpie ''mum'' had warned the goose that Keffan had nightmares last night, but the kitten didn't want to explain. The cause was a mystery to Dad. Both children were calm enough today and played quietly. Gandy had no trouble watching the little ones.

In the wheelhouse of Gandy, after playing many board games all morning, Aiden and Keffan are quietly drawing, lying on the ground by waiting for the lunch break. While the kitten colors happily, the chick seems pensive and draws softly on his notebook, the black pencil firmly held in his little hand. The half-Toon is also intrigued by the calm of his friend. Taking advantage that his Daddy went out to find Daddy Cat, he almost pulled the notebook out of his bird friend's hands.

« Hey ! » The chick gets annoyed.

Keffan is horrified to see a picture of the person responsible for his nightmares: Bendy the Devil!

« Can I know why you draw this monster? » he asks, refrains from planting the sketch on his friend's head. « Are you completely sick in the head or what? »

« Oh calm down, Keffy! » Aiden grumbles as he retrieves the sketch. « He's not going to show up at once! He's in his studio! »

« Maybe, but we promised that the parents wouldn't know but if you draw without stopping this demon, they will ask questions and we will be busted! » the kitten annoys.

« Yeah, but ... I can't get him out of my head. »

« That, I think it's called post-traumatic stress syndrome. »

« No, Kef, it has nothing to do with it... but I feel like he's not like that normally. »

« No, at first he was a Toon, now he's crazy! »

« I'm not sure ... »

« Hum, let me think ... » Keffan mumbles as he recounts. « This guy is still alive when he has been forgotten for a long time, he has ink to no longer know what to do ... oh yes! **AND HE TRY TO EAT ME ALIVE!** » the kitten shouted.

Aiden is left with ruffled feathers but he quickly recreates them and sighs.

« Keffan, I know he's behaved badly but there's a mystery that's not clear here ... and I want to know what! I'm going back tonight! »

« **WHAT?** » the half-Toon is horrified. « But you're completely siphoned off, Aidy! And you think ... »

« Kef, you're my friend! My best friend, so you have to promise to tell the parents anything! »

« But you're mad! »

« Keffan, I beg you! Please, please, please, please, please! »

The kitten glares at his friend ... then sighs.

« Aiden, you'll give me that one back! »

« Before, officially promise! Hand on heart and one holding my chin! »

Keffan sighs ... but knowing that his friend wasn't going to let go, he puts his hand on his heart and takes the chin of the little magpie who does the same with him, looking him straight in the eyes.

« Brush, paint, eraser and pencil! If I denounce, dissolve my chin! » declares the chick, waiting for him to repeat and therefore promise.

Sighing, the kitten mutters:

« Brush, paint, eraser and pencil If I denounce, dissolve my chin. »

Overjoyed, Aiden jumped on his neck tweeting ''Thank you thank you thank you!''. The half-Toon squeezes his friend, who isn't reassured... when the bells ring. Gandy comes in at that moment.

« Are you coming, children? We'll meet the others at the cafeteria. »

* * *

Tonight, when the bell announcing the end of the day sounds, Heckle and Jeckle come to pick up their son. The chick looks tired and falls asleep in his mother's arms.

« What stupidity did he do to be tired like that? » Heckle jokes, stroking the feathers of his boy.

« No, he was a real little angel today. » Gandy answers, smiling at his friends. « Keffan says he's recovering last night's sleep. He's had so many nightmares like that? » the goose worries.

« Not in the early night. » Jeckle reassures, rocking his baby. « It was around 1:00 am that he woke up because of a nightmare and had a hard time going back to sleep. »

« Let's hope tonight, at home and with us, he will be able to sleep. » the Toon smiled, caressing the small head of the chick. « A good night's sleep and they will be fine tomorrow. »

« It's sure, at this age they don't need much. » Heckle smiled. « See you tomorrow, Gandy! »

« See you tomorrow, boys! »

The two magpies return home and lie Aiden down in bed, preferring to let him rest. Jeckle still leaves him a sandwich on the bedside table in case he wakes up because of hunger in the night. The parents went to bed without knowing that their chick was about to leave tonight to investigate the demon that frightened them all.

* * *

As the day before, at 11:00 pm, Aiden's alarm clock ring, extirpating the little magpie from his sleep by making him turn off his alarm clock. Taking a deep breath, he grasps his courage with both hands and goes out the window as he did the day before (taking the sandwich to eat it on the way). ToonTown's crossing seems longer and more stressful but he isn't ready to give up! He is decided to go back to this dark studio and find out who really was Bendy and what had happened to him.

* * *

Arrived in front of the abandoned tunnel, Aiden flies to pass between the planks and crosses it in one go. Once in the world of humans, he observes the studio that still seems so abandoned. The little magpie sighs, he was almost afraid that the place was destroyed in the day by the fury of the little Devil. Determined, he goes there running and enters. Closing the door quietly, he walks silently into the studio. He wanted to understand what happened but if he could avoid Bendy, that would make it better. Moving past the Bendy plush, he hesitates to take it... but he decides to touch anything. He trembles while passing by '' _Dreams come true_ '' and continues. But this time, instead of going to the ink machine, he turns. There, the corridor divides into two. He hesitates a moment... then decides to try the corridor on the left.

He arrives in another hallway with a slight recess, a chair and a tape recorder on a shelf. Intrigued, he grabs the chair, pulls it under the shelf and perches on the back to reach the device. But he is too small to reach it, and flying to it is impossible. The day before, he had damaged his wing by bumping against the walls. It was a simple, harmless scratch for a Toon but enough to keep him from flying. It wasn't an injury strictly speaking (since the Toons don't hurt themselves physically) but an embarrassment.

Aiden is still trying to catch the audio log when...

« Hey, what are you doing here? » a voice that seems to be echoed smiled.

Thinking it's Bendy, the little magpie jumps and lose his balance... to be caught by two large transparent and bluish hands. Looking up, Aiden is surprised to see another Toon in front of him. Well... it's more like a Toon ghost! A wolf surely black and white but now slightly bluish wearing a overalls.

« Sorry, little guy! » he apologizes in a soft, calm voice that sounds resonant. « I didn't think you would be so scared. It's true that I've lost a bit of a habit of seeing people. » he explains when he poses the chick. « It's been 30 years we're locked up there with Bendy... Oh, what an idiot! You're way too young, you can't know him. »

Aiden stares at the wolf ghost, flabbergasted. There were other Toons in this studio with Bendy?

« Uh ... who are you? » he stammers as he observes the wolf, his head leaning slightly to the side.

« Oh, where do I have my head, I'm not used to it anymore. Hello, little guy! My name is Boris, Boris the Wolf! »

« Nice to meet you, Boris! My name is Aiden. » the chick grinned, shaking the gloved hand that Boris is giving him.

« By the way, what are you still doing up and here right now? A child of your age is already sleeping normally. »

Aiden bites his lip before whistling quietly. Boris allows himself a little amused smile as if it reminded him of good memories.

« Well… now that you're here, I can give you a tour! Come in! I'll put you in Henry's desk, so you'll be able to look at the sketches, and explain to me more clearly what you're doing there. »

The wolf directs the chick towards the reception area and goes to the recess of the room. The little magpie observes the room, intrigued, wondering how a Human could have agreed to draw in this dark corner without any other light than that of the desk lamps.

« Here we are. » Boris smiled as he grabbed Aiden to sit on the chair. « Well, it's not the biggest nor the best location, but I can guarantee you that the one who worked there was an angel in person. »

Aiden smiles as he looks at the many sketches on the desk. Mainly sketches of Bendy but also Boris and some other characters.

« Oh, wait for me here! » the wolf suddenly exclaims as he leaves, crossing the walls to go faster.

Aiden laughs and starts to look at the sketches. All show a Bendy happy, player and joker, kind and charming, dancer and even singer. Nothing to do with the demon he has become!

« How did you get there, Bendy? ... » he mumbles, sorry and disturbed.

Bendy seemed to have a life similar to the one of any Toon... and he would suddenly ''fart the lead'' to the point of attacking his Animators? All that seems unlikely... Aiden had already seen Toons get tired but never anger like that.

* * *

He is so immersed in his thoughts that he doesn't hear someone coming behind him.

« **WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE, YOU!?** » Bendy's voice rage.

Aiden jumps and turns to see the little devil who glares at him. He seems really angry. Clenching his fists and glares, he walks towards the chick until he standed in front of him.

« I thought I was clear last night! I let you go with your Tunman friend but you never had to come back so ... **WHY ARE YOU STILL HERE?** »

Aiden trembles and gets ready to answer when ...

« Bendy, why are you screaming? »

The two Toons turn to see Boris coming back, a reel in his hand. The devil calm down when he sees the wolf, to Aiden's astonishment.

« It's nothing, Boris. Just one of last night's intruders. »

« Oh, he's the one who came yesterday? » the wolf-ghost smiled as he walked toward the little magpie. « That's why you're here. You heard about Bendy from your parents and you're curious? »

Aiden nods, not daring to say anything for fear of annoying Bendy. Boris turns to his former episode companion and smiles, amused.

« And that's why you get angry? » he chuckles. « Come on, Bendy! You too, you've been 'newborn' and curious, and I'm sure you still are. You play the big guys, but you're still the little smiling devil I know. » he smiles as he approaches the little devil until their foreheads touch each other.

Bendy blushed like crazy (which astonished Aiden) before moving away by crossing his arms and lifting his nose, sulking. Boris laughs and then kneels in front of the little one.

« Tell me, Aiden. I found this old reel of the episode '' _The Sheep Song_.'' Do you want to looking at it? »

« There are still records? » the chick marvels, taking the reel under Bendy's bored look of and Boris's smile.

« They are rare but they exist. We must have them all here and this one is the first one I show with Bendy! We weren't that bad at the time, even though our devil has always been good. »

Bendy blushed at the Wolf's words and, embarrassed, he moved away grumbling.

* * *

Boris chucks and leans over to Aiden.

« He isn't that mean! It's just that after what happened, he became a little wild and you have to tame him to find the real Bendy. »

« What happened to make him wild? » the chick asks.

The Toon sighs, losing his cheerful air as if it reminded him of terrible memories. Then, looking up at his little guest, he forces a smile.

« You're a little young to hear that, boy, but know you're welcome here. As long as you respect us, Bendy and I, there's no problem. »

Aiden is intrigued by all these mysteries... but he smiles and catches the chin of the Wolf (which seems a little surprised).

« Brush, paint, eraser and pencil! If I denounce, dissolve my chin! » the little Toon promise.

Boris laughs and ruffles Aiden's hair-feathers before picking up the reel to take the child to the projector to watch the movie. Bendy (hidden in the corner of the hallway) observes and listens attentively. Seeing his unhappy companion laugh and have fun with Aiden make him feels his heart squeeze. He looks away, feeling the tears invade his eyes before flowing on his cheeks and his hand will land on his stomach. Trembling and furious, he clenches his teeth and goes away grumbling:

« All liars! ... The Creators lied to us! **Liars! Liars!** »

* * *

Later, after the episode ended on a smiling Bendy on Boris' shoulders, Aiden applauded happily, amusing the wolf.

« It's awesome! I'm sure many people would like to see these cartoons again! » he smiles, turning to his host.

« Bendy was very famous before all that. People loved him and as soon as we started our duet, the studio exploded and Joey thought that in a short time we could have become like Disney or Universal. Or TerryToons Studios where Henry left before all that happened. »

« But ''all that'' what? » the chick asks.

« It's not for your age. » Boris sighs before looking at the old clock. « But now you should go home to sleep. »

Aiden freezes and look at the clock to see the time: 1:20 am!

« **Damn!** Tomorrow I'm going to be a booby bird! I have to go! »

Without any explanation, the chick flies off and rushes toward the door, missing a knock on Bendy who is folding a sheet of paper. Seeing the little magpie run to the exit, he chuckles.

« Already annoyed? That's the curiosity of children, even the Toons one. »

Boris, who followed Aiden, sighs as he looks at Bendy, almost saying: ''You're exaggerating''. But Heckle and Jeckle's son turns to them with a big smile.

« I'll be back tomorrow night, I promise! » he shouts as he opens the door.

Bendy is so shocked that he tilts from his chair and stands up just in time to see the Toon child close the door. Turning to his companion, he points to the entrance and is indignant:

« No, but I'm dreaming! I gave him the scare of his life last night, I don't welcome him here at all, no Toon has been here for years and he comes like a flower and wants to come back every night ? »

« What do you want? The curiosity of the children is much bigger than you think. » the wolf smiled, recovering the folding of Bendy to finish it.

Once this is done, he make the paper airplane fly with a smile. Bendy (although he loves it normally) pays no attention to it and stares at the door. Was the arrival of Aiden a mere coincidence? Or was it still a trick of this monster who had taken everything from him?

* * *

 **That's chapter 3 :D**

 **Aiden has just discovered a new character: Boris the Wolf ^^ Yes yes, he appears in this fiction ^ ^ but he isn't a "walking dead", no no no! Let's say for the moment that he's a ghost. The term isn't very appropriate but you will understand why later. The Toons don't use this term ghosts for Toons like Boris ^^**

 **Would Aiden be bringing Bendy back to normal? What do you think?**

 **Ah! before someone says something wrong, the pictures don't belong to me ... except for those that Foxiso is kind enough to draw for me! : D Thank you again to her!**

 **Please leave a comment :) And see you next time :D**


	5. Chapter 4: Forbidden Friendship

**Inked in Mystery**

* * *

 **Chapter 4 : Forbidden Friendship**

The next day, at the TerryToons Studios, Keffan goes around in the wheelhouse of his dads. He is crazy about worry. What if Aiden didn't survive his solo visit to Bendy's studio? And if that demon had devoured him?

« Keffan, what's the matter, sweetheart? » Gandy worries, putting down what he is doing to approach his son who jumped (not having heard him come in).

« Daddy? Aiden has arrived? » the kitten asks.

« Not yet, kid. » SourPuss answers by turning the page of his diary. « Heckle and Jeckle have no filming this morning so if they want to sleep in, we will not see them before lunch. »

Keffan tightly squeezes his plush, obviously very worried. His official dad kneels in front of him and checks to see if his tremors are due to a fever but he doesn't detect any abnormal temperature.

« My kitten, what's wrong? » the goose worries. « You are all pale and you are trembling like a leaf. »

« It's your nightmares that put you in this state? » SourPuss worries as he approaches.

The kitten looks at his dads and nods. It is true that his nightmares disturb him a lot and as he promised Aiden, he can't say that he really saw what makes him so scared.

Gandy and SourPuss look at each other with a small smile, reassured that it is only Keffan's nightmares that scares him so much.

« Keffan, sweetheart. » the goose smiled. « These are just nightmares, bad dreams, and you're in a good position to know that in our world only good dreams come true. »

The kitten sighs and squeezes his plush. Seeing that their boy wasn't going to be calm until he saw his friend, SourPuss took him by the hand and dragged him out of the house.

« Come on, let's go see Heckle and Jeckle. You will feel reassured once you see Aiden. »

* * *

Aiden sleeps deeply in his bed, wrapped in his blanket and hugging his pillow against him. Jeckle comes in and smiles at seeing his chick so peaceful. Without a sound, he goes to the bed, sits down and strokes the feathers still fluffy of his son.

« He is still sleeping ? » Heckle whispered, poking his head into the opening of the door.

« Yes, but he had to get up in the night to eat. » the other magpie smiled, lifting the empty plate that was on the bedside table. « The poor sweetheart, he really didn't have much sleep in the last days. »

« Well, Keffan had his nightmares and by day they had to make idiots in the studios. »

Jeckle turns to his husband with an air of saying ''whose fault is it? ''... when someone knocks on the door.

Heckle enjoys the distraction to get out of the room and avoid the hassle. The other pie sighs, rolling his eyes before leaning toward his son.

« Aiden, treasure. » he smiled, shaking his baby's shoulder gently. « Honey, you have to wake up. »

The chick moans and stretches all his way... before covering himself with his blanket, making his mother laugh.

« Sorry Aiden, but you have to get up. » he insists, removing the blanket, fully revealing the little bird who is grumbling, rolling himself in a ball against his pillow.

« Another 5 minutes, Mom ... »

« Jeckle! » Heckle suddenly calls from the front door. « Can you bring Aiden here, please? »

Although intrigued, the magpie takes his chick who grumbles in his arms before joining his husband.

* * *

Aiden rubs his sleepy eyes and finally emerges from his sleep to see his mom lead him to the entrance where there is his father... with SourPuss and Keffan. As soon as he sees the chick, the kitten releases the hand of his Daddy Cat and runs to Jeckle, surprising the three magpies. SourPuss explains after seeing the look of his friends.

« Keffan still had nightmares, and this morning he was circling like a caged animal so he was scared. I thought bringing him here to see Aiden would calm him down. »

« Ah! You did well, SourPuss. » Heckle said before looking at his husband, who glared at him and put Aiden down so Keffan could hug him. « If you want, we can keep him here this morning and bring him back to the studios at the lunch break. »

« That's what I thought to asking you ... if you don't mind, of course! »

« No, there are no worries. » Jeckle promises by forcing a smile on his face for SourPuss even though his eyes still say to Heckle, ''I'm going to kill you.''

« Keffan, I can't breathe! » Aiden grumbles, caught in an embrace of the kitten.

A hug with a force he thought only possible in Toons bears. The three parents burst out laughing, amused to see their children so close and the kitten also reassured to see Aiden safe and sound. The chick wiggles and finally escape the hug before driving his friend in his room.

« Aiden, you haven't eat your breakfast yet! » exclaims Jeckle.

« I'll take it after, Mom! » the chick yelled, closing the door under Heckle and SourPuss's laughs.

* * *

Once locked in his room, the little magpie turns to his friend Tunman, crossing his arms.

« What? » he is annoyed, shrugging his shoulders. « I was scared for you, it's normal, isn't it? »

« Did you hold your tongue? » his friend asks, almost glaring at him.

« I didn't say anything, don't worry, but I was two fingers away ... No but seriously, Aiden, what were you thinking of yesterday when you wanted to go back alone? I made the worst possible movies in my head! What would I say to adults if you had been sucked by this demon? Fortunately you changed your mind visibly ... »

« Not at all! I was there last night. » replied the chick, bending his chest.

« **WHAT?** » suffocates the Tunman.

Aiden puts his hands on his mouth to silence him, annoyed by his almost phobic fear, and explains:

« Yes, I went back last night, at first I wanted to be discreet ... and I met another Toon in this studio. »

« Huh? » Keffan wonders. « There are other monsters like him? »

« But stop it! They are Toons like the others... or almost! » defend the chick. « And even though Bendy isn't the ideal host, Boris is very nice. »

« Boris? »

« That's the other Toon who lives with Bendy. He's a ghost-wolf... even though in the episode ''The Sheep Song'' he looked very much alive. »

« **Wow, wow, wait!** » his friend interrupts. « You tell me that in addition to this demonic devil, there is a wolf ghost that played in episodes with him except that in these episodes, he was alive? »

« In short, that's it. »

Keffan takes his head. It was getting too complicated for him. A demonic Toon who was forgotten and who should have disappeared but who was still alive, a ghost-wolf Toon who appears alive in his episodes, and then what? A bastarded Tunman cherub who drinks the blood of Bendy's victims?

« I don't feel well... » mutters the kitten, disgusted by his own thoughts.

« Oh! You're nice, Keffy, but you're not sending your breakfast and your hairballs back to my room! » Aiden warns, grabbing his friend, ready to guiding him out.

« No, it's okay. » the kitten grumbles. « I hope you're happy now... »

« I'm going back again tonight. » the little magpie admit.

« **WHAT!?** But you really want to get killed or what? »

« Keffan, I'm sure Bendy isn't proof: Boris is super nice! »

« But Bendy ... »

« I'm sure there is something more serious behind all this and that Bendy is nice! I want to help him, Keffan, but you have to keep the secret! »

Keffan is about to argue ... but Aiden seems so convinced that he doesn't know what to say to convince him that it's a bad idea. Sighing, he gives a little smile to his friend.

« I pinky promise, no? »

Aiden smiles with all his teeth and jumps on Keffan's neck, chirping ''Thank you thank you thank you! ''... when the belly of the little magpie begins to chirp, reminding him that he hasn't eat anything this morning. Keffan bursts out laughing.

« The superiority of the Tunmans over the Toons: they don't forget to eat! »

« Yak yak yak ... » squeaks the chick. « It's not like we really needed it! »

In a joking tone, the two friends pull their tongues out before running out of the room.

* * *

At the lunch break, Heckle and Jeckle went to the studio with the kids ... but they were surprised to find SourPuss alone and Gandy nowhere in sight.

« Daddy Cat? Where's Dad? » Keffan asks, causing a grunt and the blush of the Toon cat.

« Keffan! »

« Sorry ... » the kitten mutters.

« Gandy said he had something to settle so he won't be here by the day so I asked Roger if he could watch the brats today. »

The two magpies freeze and look at SourPuss as if he were crazy.

« Roger? »

« What ? »

« If he's as talented as in his episodes, maybe we have trouble getting in. Don't you think so? » Heckle mumbles.

« Oh come on ! » the cat sighs. « You know that he won't be alone! His wife is at home this afternoon! She works only in the evening. »

« It's not necessarily better, if you want my opinion. » Jeckle sighs, looking at the children.

Keffan and Aiden looked at each other and giggled, knowing what an afternoon under the supervision of Roger Rabbit of Maroon Studios mean.

* * *

Later that afternoon, the two boys draw peacefully at the feet of Jessica who is sitting on the couch and is recovering a touch of red on her lips. She looks down at the little ones and smiles... when a little red-haired girl with a rabbit-like face but no fur (except behind her cheeks) with long red hair and two big white rabbit ears leaps at Keffan, making him groan with annoyance while Aiden chuckles by closing his notebook before she notices the sketch he makes. This is the daughter of one of the most heterogeneous couples that little TerryToons have ever seen: Candice Rabbit! The daughter of the famous Roger Rabbit and the beautiful singer Jessica Rabbit. Although very human in appearance, we couldn't doubt that she was entirely Toon.

« **Hello boys !** » she chirps, squeezing Keffan as hard as she can.

« Candice honey, go gently with your friends. » Jessica sighs softly even though she cannot hide an amused little smile.

« Yes mom ! » the girl smiles, straightening up and making the military salute, making her mother laugh.

« Who's ready for a little football game, kids? » Roger asks as he enters the living room, a soccer ball in his hands.

As his friends scream with joy and gets up, Aiden puts his notebook under his feathers and gets up for followed the others ... but when he passes in front of Jessica, he decides to take advantage that he is now alone to ask a important question to the young woman Toon.

« Mrs. Jessica? »

« Yes, Aiden? » she smiles, leaning towards the little magpie.

« It may sounds weird, but... how do you know if you can trust a person? »

The red-haired woman frowns at the strange question of a child so young ... but she smiles and answers:

« Well... the first thing you can trust is the opinion people have about that person. For example, I inquired about Mr. Eddie Valiant before going to see him to ask him to help my husband. »

« Yes, but... sometimes the opinion that others have is wrong. Excuse me if I'm honest but ... you look more like what Dad calls a 'femme fatale' than a mother. » the chick adds, making the adult laugh.

« It's true, trusting the appearances and opinions of others for a Toon isn't the ideal. I was drawn that way even though I'm not bad. For the Toons, you can listen to what others are saying but the best thing is to make your own opinion. For that, observe, get to know and, most importantly, look that person right in the eye. » the beautiful singer seriously explains. « Us, the Toons, we are made to laugh, have fun and most of us play a role, but there is one thing that doesn't lie in a Toon: his look! Nobody can lie by the look. If you have a doubt, look into this person's eyes in front of you, and there you will know immediately. »

Aiden thinks about what his friend's mother has just told him ... then he smiles.

« Thank you very much, Mrs. Jessica. » the chick thank.

« Aiden, where did you go? » Roger calls from the garden.

Under the laughter of the Toon rabbit's wife, the little magpie runs to join his friends to play.

* * *

That same evening, in SillyVisions Studios, Bendy goes around in circles, moving from one room to another like a caged animal (which is a bit the case even if he could leave his prison if he wanted to) grumbling. Sitting at a desk, Boris is quietly observing old scenarios ... when Bendy arrives in the office. The wolf sighs as he hears the devil get upset alone.

« You mumble. » the wolf ghost sighs, drawing the attention of the little devil that he had not seen him.

« No, I'm not mumbling! » Bendy says.

« Oh no, that's right! » the other Toon exclaims with a small smile. « You speak in your beard! And the best is that you can do it when you don't have hair on your chin! You don't even have hair at all. »

Bendy glares at him, restraining himself from spitting ink in his face (knowing it was as harmless as a postilion) when his gaze lands on a box full of photographs on the desk next to his friend.

Furious, he rushes to a drawer to get out a brush he sticks in his mouth before almost tearing the box from the hands of Boris. He sorts the pictures and all those where there are humans are put aside. The wolf looks at this little game and sighs when he sees his friend pulling the brush covered with ink from his mouth. With black ink, he covers the faces of humans (with an extra layer for some) grumbling, mumbling.

« Bendy, let go of it and stop this nonsense. » Boris sighs.

« I do what I want ! » Bendy gets upset.

« No, especially when it's to make you sick for unimportant things. Humans are out and not in the studio. »

Bendy looks up at Boris, glaring at his friend before bitching:

« **You annoy me, Boris, I'm still at home here and I don't want to hear about humans anymore!** »

« You're the one who annoys you alone. I'm just saying that you have too harsh resentment. Humans haven't come here for years and you know why! » the wolf growls, attracting yet another furious glare from the devil. « Then you'll make me happy and forget the Humans, leave them for what they are, and stop putting ink on Henry's pictures! It becomes childish! »

Bendy sighs, chasing the ink that begins to dribble from his forehead and then furiously throws his brush before closing the photo box ... when the hinges of the door creak. Straightening up, the two SillyVision Toons come out of the office, stand in a hallway to see the entrance ... and see a little Toon magpie arrive smiling.

« How do you want me to forget the humans if they send me the chick every night? » the star of the studios grumbles before moving away to join the newcomer.

* * *

Aiden smiles when entering the studio and digs under his feathers to get out his notebook when ...

« What do you want now ? »

He raises his head to see Bendy come to him, visibly annoyed.

« I promised I would come back! » Aiden smiled. « So here I am, and I have a little something for you! »

The little devil observes the chick, frowning, ready to act if he makes a suspicious gesture... when the little with black feathers tears a sheet of his notebook before handing it to the Master of the Places with a big smile. Boris approaches to see... and smiles as he sees the childish sketch of Bendy.

« Awww it's so cute! Doesn't it you remember our little fans, Bendy? Every week, we had about ten sketches like that. » the wolf smiled.

Bendy is dark ... then he crumples the sketch in his fist by shooting the child who is freezing, worried by this brutal reaction.

« Why did you come back? What are you trying to do, friend-friend? Why ? **ANSWER!** » he yells, furious.

Aiden looks at him, puzzled and worried ... before looking down.

« I just wanted to make you happy. It must be sad to be locked in the same place for 30 years, and... you don't look so mean when we look in your eyes. »

Bendy freezes, forbidden ... then he sighs.

« Anyway, you won't leave any time soon. » Bendy mumbles, going away to Henry's office. « So go! Search! When you're finally tired, warn me, chick. »

« Aiden! »

Bendy stops and turns to the chick who looks at him with a neutral air that is strange for his age. Understanding that the little devil didn't understand, he explained:

« My name is Aiden and not 'chick'. »

« Yak yak yak! » the Toon squeaks as he walks back to the desk, the sketch still in his hand.

He hears Aiden speak with Boris and the Wolf guides him through the studio, leaving him alone in Henry's desk. He sits on the stool and sighs as he puts his feet on the desk before balancing his seat. Slowly, he unfolds the sketch and looks at it with a small smile... before a few tears run down his cheeks.

« Henry would have found it too cute ... » Bendy thought, wiping his tears before hanging the sketch with one of the officials left on the desk.

* * *

While Boris shows the old screening room where the whole team was gathering to watch the episodes, Aiden notices flower pots filled with dirt and some with stems left in it.

« Boris, what's that? »

The ghost-wolf turns to the chick and looks at the flowerpots before having a small smile.

« Go look for yourself. »

The little magpie looks at Boris before heading for the pots to take one with stems. The flowers were drawed and they had just disappeared. Intrigued, he goes away in the studio looking for the responsible... and finds him in the desk. He is also intriguing to see his sketch next to the ones make by Henry. Taking a deep breath, he approaches shyly.

« Bendy? »

« Hmm? » mumbles the little devil, looking up to see the chick with the flowerpot where three poor stems still stand.

« Why did you erase those flowers? » Aiden asks.

In fact, he saw no other explanation for the disappearance of these flowers except that the master of the place has erased them. Bendy frowns as Boris (hidden in the corner of the hallway) chuckles.

« I didn't erase them, I ate them. »

« You eat flowers? » the chick is surprised aloud.

« Well, we can be a demon and be vegetarian! » he replies, shrugging his shoulders.

With a calm gesture, he grabs one of the stems and chews quietly under Aiden's bewildered look, making Boris laugh. The wolf approaches and smiles while kneeling next to the chick.

« You mustn't have heard much about Bendy's vegetarian side, am I wrong? »

« Everyone says Bendy is a monster ... » Aiden admits, a little ashamed.

Bendy misses strangling himself with his flower stem.

« **What?** They're kidding me, right? I've never hurt a fly! »

Furious, Bendy gets up and moves away, grumbling. Aiden vaguely hears « dirt of Humans » or « if I ever see him again » before he disappears into the hallway. Boris sighs and then looks down at the chick.

« Don't worry, he's a little shaken, but it'll be fine with him. He just thought the Toons would see him differently, without listening to what the humans would say. »

The little magpie feels sorry for the little devil... then he turns to the wolf.

« Boris? Do you have other episodes to show me? » he chirps, enviously.

The blue Toon looks amused on the face and then takes the chick with him to the projection room.

* * *

Lying in the old recording studio of episodes, Bendy tries to change his mind ... when he hears the laughter and applause of little Aiden. Intrigued, he plunges into a task of ink and travels silently to the projection room.

Through the thin film of ink that keeps him in the task (and therefore invisible to others), he sees Boris smiling as he watches Aiden dancing happily to the music, trying to imitate the Bendy on the screen dancing in singing, wearing a tuxedo with a cane in his hand. The little devil rolls his eyes as he sees the chick wagging awkwardly on the rhythm, making the gentleman so he get out of the puddle, alerting Boris who has gotten used to hearing him go out of this strange mode of transport, and goes to the little one.

Aiden is so taken in his game that he doesn't hear Bendy ... and jumps when he feels a gloved hand grabbing his shoulder.

« If you want to dance, chick, don't just imitate what you see, you have to let yourself be carried away by rhythm! » the devil explained by stopping the film.  
He rewinds to the beginning of the song and, leaving the beginning dialogue to end, he make appear an ink cane while his episode character comes on stage.

As soon as the song starts, Bendy starts performing the movements he was performing in the episode. He begins seriously, his eyes closed and without the shadow of a smile (unlike his character on the film that sings with a huge smile worthy of the greatest musical shows), as if it hurt him... then the rhythm begins to become more danceable, forcing the dancing devil has accelerated the movement, making the round trips by following the rhythm with his feet and his cane, eyes always closed. The rhythm accelerates once more and the song stops, leaving Bendy to run a series of fast steps (where he stopped Aiden to show him)... and there, the little magpie is surprised to see the little black and white Toon who seems almost possesses ! A small smile appears on his face.

Boris is also surprised and leans towards Aiden.

« I think you're bringing back to us the old Bendy! » he whispers happy.

« Really? » the little TerryToons wonders.

« Bendy hasn't danced in years even if he always loved it. And at the beginning of his dance, you must have seen that he wasn't having fun. He was doing it for pride, but now he's back. He lets the music guide him, and he enjoys it. »

Aiden looks at Bendy and, indeed, the little devil seems to have regained the joy he had in the episode. The Bendy of the episode restart singing... and Bendy begins to sing with him. He has the impression of being caught in a dream where he relives his years of glory and his heart filled with hatred seems to start beating for what he loved above all else: dance! He lets himself be transported by the rhythm and relives the scene as the day he filmed it. He sings, full of energy and finally feeling himself for the first time in 30 years. When the music stops, he tilts as in the movie.

* * *

As spectators in the movie applaud, Aiden also applauds, pulling Bendy out of his reverie and blushing when he realizes he has gone aboard.

« **Teach me to dance like you!** » the chick beg by going to stick in the legs of the devil.

Bendy seems lost and looks up to Boris. The wolf is overjoyed to see that his companion wasn't as blinded by Hatred as he feared. But the old star seems completely lost.

« But... why do you absolutely want to bond with me? » Bendy stammers.

« **Because you're great!** » Aiden smiled. « You're a very talented Toon and I'm sure your episodes would still please if we took them out! And now that I've seen you danced, I know you're not bad! I'm sure even if I'm didn't stop, you wouldn't have done anything to Keffan! You are neither a monster nor a demon! You are a Toon who has been forgotten and wounded... even if I don't know why. »

Boris smiles, admiring at the outspokenness of the little magpie... and Bendy begins to cry. At this moment, he feels horrible to have treated so badly this little one who could only be one thing: an angel! Bursting into tears, he squeezes Aiden very hard against him, letting ink dripping on his body and forehead. The little magpie is surprised... but he sees that the ink doesn't hurt him. It doesn't even mix with the painting that composes him. Then he squeezes as hard as he can the devil in his little arms to comfort him... and Boris joins the embrace.

While Bendy thought he had lost everything, a little angel named Aiden had entered his studio and the little magpie promised to uncover the end of the story and free Bendy despite the fact that this friendship was forbidden.

* * *

 **This is chapter 4!**

 **Aiden confronts the ban to understand what happened to Bendy and finally manages to bond with him :)**

 **For the part where Bendy dances, I advise you to watch the video "Putting on the Ritz original movie 1930" before. That way, you will see the movements he may have made in his episodes and read the scene while listening to the song (I think it's pretty cool ^^)**

 **Will Aiden come to understand what happened to Bendy? Will he help him? Discover it soon :)**


	6. Chapter 5: Macabre Discovery and

**Inked in Mystery**

* * *

 **Chapter 5 : Macabre Discovery and First Answers**

The following weeks were pretty similar. During the day, Aiden was playing with his friends as if nothing had happened (even if Keffan knew his secret) and at night, he went to meet Bendy and Boris. Every night, they watched episodes of Bendy and the devil learned to dance to the little magpie. Of course, it was painstaking... but the evenings with the happy chick were gradually giving back to Bendy his old personality. Several times, Boris and Aiden had been surprised to hear the Toon laugh with pure joy and no sadistic joy as the first time the little magpie met his new friend. Bendy seemed to find what he had lost ... but everything changed one night.

* * *

Aiden smiles as he watches ' _The Dancing Devil_ ' lying on his stomach, his head supported by his hands. Bendy and Boris are behind him and watch the episode nostalgically... when the Bendy of the episode appears with a pink tutu (or Aiden assumes it was pink). The little magpie waits, intrigued, but the little devil starts to dance with the tutu. Despite all these efforts, the chick can't help but burst out laughing.

« Pfff **HA ha ha!** No, but what's this costume? » he laughs, turning to the two adults.

« Well, it's a costume for dancing ballet. » the devil replies, shrugging his shoulders.

« Seriously! » the chick grinned, turning to them, sitting as he should. « You were wrong in the costume but since it was funny, they left the scene! That's it? »

Bendy suddenly turns black, as if he's hurt, and drops of ink drip from his forehead. Boris bites his lip and gets up to kneel in front of Aiden.

« Aiden ... you know, this scene is Bendy's favorite and…. »

« **I WORKED VERY HARD FOR THIS SCENE AND I WAS TALENT !** » Bendy suddenly yelled, making Boris and Aiden jump. « **DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA OF THE QUANTITY OF WORK THAT IS REPRESENTED? SURE THAT NO! YOU ARE ONLY A LITTLE BIRD! AND I REFUSE THAT A CHICK MOKS OPEN TO WHAT I LOVE THE MOST IN THIS WORLD! GET OUT OF HERE! I DON'T WANT TO SEE YOU ANYMORE! GET OUT !** »

Aiden trembles and gets up before running to the exit.

As soon as the chick is gone, Bendy put his hand into his hip to pull a cigar out of his hammerspace and light it with a snap of his finger. Furious, he pulls hard on the cigar before spitting out the smoke in small clouds like a small locomotive... when he looks up at Boris. The wolf seems disappointed by his behavior.

« What? » the demon grumbles.

« Don't you think you've been a little hard here? » his companion sighs.

« Did you hear like me, didn't you? **HE LAUGHS AT MY DANCE!** »

« I was there, I heard everything. But Aiden is a child, he doesn't always measure the reach of his words. »

The devil gets another puff from his cigar, grumbling.

« And by the way, since when did you smoke this filth? » the wolf questions.

« It's only flavored paper! » the little demon mumbles.

« And what about Aiden? And what if someone wanted to dissolve him? His soul couldn't rest in peace because he would like to be reconciled with you! » Boris gets indignant, making Bendy giggle.

« Why do you want someone dissolved him? It's a little angel with a little sugar face! »

Boris looks at Bendy with a look that says a lot about what he's thinking.

« OK OK ! I'm always wrong anyway! » the dancing demon impolite, throwing his cigar. « I'm going to see to fix that ... » he sighs, squeezing ink from his hand.

Once the puddle is large enough, he slips effortlessly in and goes to the studio's entrance... but Aiden isn't there. To tell the truth, nothing shows the passage of the chick.

« Where could he go? » Bendy mumbles, plunging back into the ink puddle.

* * *

Aiden advances in the studio. Bendy had just had a fit... but the chick is no longer impressed by that. If the demon no longer wanting to see him, alright! So he decides to take a ride in the studio until the Ink Demon calms down. He walks past the Ink Machine (feeling more and more uncomfortable in front of this machine) then turns to the right lane. He whistles gently as he gets to the end of the corridor. He sees a room with six pedestals ... but he decides to turn left, in a corridor that leads to a closed door. Curious to discover a new wonder, he stands on tiptoe and grabs the handle. He just turned the handle to open that ...

« **AIDEN! NO !** » Bendy screams horrified as he comes out of an ink puddle behind him.

Boris appears around the corner... but it's too late to stop Aiden.

* * *

The door opens in a sinister grinding and there, Heckle and Jeckle's son literally finds himself breathless by horror, his hands pressed on his beak and his eyes terrified. There, right in front of him, attached to what looks like an experiment table of Disney's Mad Doctor, is the body of a Toon.

A big black and white wolf dressed in a jumpsuit and whose ribcage is wide open, the ribs apart, and empty! The Toon's heart had disappeared and large splashes of ink covered the floor and the walls. But what scares the little Toon the most is that he immediately recognizes the corpse.

« Boris ... » he suffocates, turning to the wolf ghost and the devil.

Bendy is literally frozen, shaking and big tears of ink running down his cheeks. Boris sighs. He looks hurt but much less than his friend. Aiden looks at both of them, unable to believe what he has just discovered. That's why Boris looked very alive to the episodes in which he appeared. It's because once, he was alive!

« Are you ... you're not a drawn ghost? » the chick stammers.

« No. » sighs the wolf. « That's what's left of my body... and what you see is my soul. »

Like all the Toons, Boris has a soul that can escape from his body when this one cannot stand it anymore (too damaged or too weak) and it was often used in scenarios and gags but the bodies were always rehabilitated so that the soul can return in it. But there, the body of Boris is in a lamentable state... and above all, his heart was gone! Even with a body in poor condition, the soul could return to it thanks to the heart. Without heart, the soul had no way to find his body. To tell the truth, a heartless Toon was no more than a soul in pain. Literally as figuratively…

Aiden is subjugated, horrified ... to tell the truth, he doesn't know what to think.

« But ... how did it happen? What's happened ? » he asks, terrorized.

Bendy and Boris look at each other and the Dancing Devil shakes his fists and growls:

« Joey Drew ... have you heard that name before? »

« No ... » the chick stammers.

« That's better…. this Human is a real **monster!** » Bendy gets annoyed to the point of almost boiling the ink that composes him, dripping it on his forehead. « In the old days he was our friend and the director of this studio. He was very visionary and ambitious and people admired him for that. And personally I always had a hard time getting in touch with him. He seemed to avoid contact with the Toons unlike the others and especially unlike Henry ... »

« Who's that, Henry!? » Aiden bursts.

The two Toons kept talking about this human but the chick didn't even know who he was. Bendy being too disturbed to answer, Boris resumes.

« Henry was our Animator. He was one of the first to enter the SillyVision Studios adventure with Joey and they became very close friends. To be honest, without Henry, this studio would never break. I was his first draw and I rained for a while. Bendy was created after and that's where the studio broke into the world of Toons. »

« But then, what happened to ...? » the chick ask, pointing at the corpse with a trembling finger.

« Oh well ... »

« Joey showed his **true** face. » Bendy rage. « He showed what it was to be a Creator! Because he was our director, he thought he could play the sorcerer's apprentice! He bought this damn machine, claiming to use it to improve the drawings but this monster used this ink on us, the Toons! He pretended to be a Creator ... but he's only a traitor! **A FILTHY TRAITOR!** »

No longer holding, Bendy bursts into tears and falls to his knees, shaking all over his body. Boris gets up to him and caresses his head with an intriguing sweetness for Aiden (the only people he saw so close, it was his parents) and he sighs before continuing.

« Joey was doing some tests on us, especially me and the other minor characters because Bendy was the star of the studios ... and one day, he did the most terrible of his experiences: he ripped my heart. »

Aiden is horrified and puts his hands on his beak.

« I was unconscious for a while and when I got back to that form, I found Bendy in tears and dripping ink near the machine and the studio was deserted. It was the day we were locked up here. Bendy panicked when he saw what Joey had done to me and he absorbed a lot of ink from the machine to become more imposing and protect himself. »

Bendy's sobs redoubled, hurt by his horrible memories. Even though it was 30 years old, the injury was still alive, morally and physically. Aiden feels his eyes fill with tears when he sees his new friend as miserable. He then runs to hold Bendy in his arms, trembling and restraining himself from crying.

« I'm sorry ... I didn't know ... »

The dancing demon (whose cheeks are now black with tears) accepts the embrace of the little magpie, feeling his heart calm down by feeling these little arms and hearing this little voice full of tears for something that didn't touch him very much (even not at all).

« You have nothing to do with it ... » he sighs as he strokes the back of the chick. « It's the guilty of humans ... Joey but also the others who surely knew about it. The others who knew and did nothing. Humans only see us as tools, objects to make people laugh and make money! » he suddenly becomes angry. « They don't even see us as living beings. **That's why I hate them! The Humans and their bastards, the Tunmen! They're just liars! All liars!** »

* * *

Aiden sighs for the umpteenth time of the day. Bendy's words are looping in his head... and to be honest, the more he observes around him in the studios, the more these words seem true. The most striking example he saw was Antoine! This damn episodes director seemed to hate the Toons and showed them no respect... but nobody in the studio likes him. Some humans speak and laugh with him but, in the vast majority, they sulk and ignore him. Aiden had never approached him too much (his mother kept him far away from the Human because of a bad joke he allegedly said while his parents were hatching him) but he had never liked this Human.

Since he cannot change his mind, he jumps from his perch (a microphone boom) and walks out of the studio to find Keffan. His friend is in front of his dad's wheelhouse, reading a comic book, while Gandy is working on a junk next to him. It is besides the goose which notice the small magpie first.

« Ah! Hi Aiden! » He said, forcing his son to lift his head.

« Hi Uncle Gandy ... » the chick mutters before planting himself in front of Keffan. « We can talk ? »

The kitten understands that there is a problem with the neutral tone of his friend. Even Gandy is worried.

« Hey ! Are you OK ? You look all sad, chick. »

« I'm fine ... » the chick softly answers.

« Alright come on! » Keffan said, getting up and forcing a smile. « We're going to play in the wheelhouse! »

« Don't do the mess! » the goose warns when both children enter the wheelhouse.

« Yes Dad ! »

* * *

Once inside, Keffan closes the door and turns to his friend.

« What's the matter ? Looks like your parents have just disappeared. »

« No, on that there is no problem. » Aiden sighs, sitting on the bench. « It's ... do it ... do you think humans can lie to us? »

Keffan looks at Aiden as if his feathers had suddenly turned from black to green.

« What do you mean by that? »

« Do you... believe that Humans don't see us as living beings, but more like stupid objects to make people laugh and make money? »

« What are you talking about ? » the kitten mumbles. « Humans work with us, we're mostly actors and we make money together. In the backstage news, Toons actors and human directors make half the money from the episodes. »

« I'm not so sure anymore ... I've been watching humans today and ... I feel like they don't appreciate us ... »

Keffan frowns as he looks at Aiden ... then he sighs and crosses his arms.

« That's the other Inky Demon who put that in your mind? » he grunts, annoyed.

« He has a name and you know it! » the chick groan. « And he didn't put anything in my mind. I just figured out why he was crazy... but he's just a wounded Toon. He's nice, but he's suffered a lot and he had trouble trusting because that he was betrayed. »

« That's what he told you and you were stupid enough to believe it? »

« **YOU DIDN'T SEEN WHAT I SEEN !** » Aiden screams, his eyes filled with tears and startling his friend.

The little magpie had seen Boris and the Wolf's soul wouldn't stay with Bendy if it was the little devil who did that. So, even though he couldn't believe that humans could do that, he didn't see why Bendy would lie.

* * *

Keffan calms down, but looks at Aiden with concern.

« My word, he has washed your brain! How can you believe that humans are bad? »

The black chick is about to argue ... when screams echo in the studio. The children then leave the wheelhouse and join Gandy who has approached the center of agitation. Center that happens to be Aiden's parents, Heckle and Jeckle, in full argument with Antoine!

« **You have nothing to say about the scenario of the episode that we play!** You're not our director! » Heckle yell.

« Maybe but I'm one of the directors of the Studio! **And I'm a Human!** I'm one of your bosses! »

« You're not the absolute boss here! And Paul Terry has already given you a job that lives up to your stupidity! »

« Heckle, stop! » Jeckle intervenes, wanting to avoid the scandal.

« You should listen to your lover, the gay bird! » the Human rage. « It's because of **you-two** that Paul Terry doesn't give me any more good scenarios or only secondary episodes that don't work! I have a crazy talent but because of your whining to the 'Grand Manitou', I am lowered to second class role! »

« **A crazy talent?** » Aiden's magpie mother exclaim. « Do you realize that you gave us something to make **an omelette** if our egg wasn't **viable?** Do you think it's something to say to future parents when they're expecting a baby? **What would you say if you were told to eat your own children?** »

The director then shakes him violently to silence him and glares at him.

« **Hey ! I forbid you to touch him!** » Heckle screams, planting himself between his husband and their opponent.

Antoine was everything (a moron, a heartless idiot, a boastful patient convinced to be out of the thigh to Jupiter, etc.) but he is certainly not a human that was good to make angry. With a tone mixing disgust and hatred, he vociferates:

« This studio would turn a thousand times better with **my** ideas! Paul Terry shouldn't have let slaves get reviews and take over the studio! »

While Aiden is literally frozen in horror at these words (like most Toons present), two animators rush to the other human and catch him by the arms. But the chick cannot bear what his ears have heard and he runs out.

« **Aiden! Wait!** » Keffan cried, running after him, only being noticed by his father.

* * *

Bill (former director of Heckle and Jeckle's episodes and new great director after Paul Terry retirement*) crashes before the raging Antoine and glares at him.

« If you dare to treat the actors of this studio once again as inferior beings, you will not only have my fist in your face but you will have to look for work elsewhere. » he threatens, visibly furious.

Antoine stares at him hatefully, not understanding why Bill was chosen as the new Grand Chief and not him, then gets rid of the grasp of the two animators who hold him before moving away grumbling.

Aiden leaves the studios crying, stumbling in his own feet and falling to his knees in the street. Bendy was right. Humans saw them as slaves! Their smiles, their kindness, everything was wrong! Keffan comes out behind him and takes his shoulders.

« Aiden! Antoine is a moron and everyone hates him. He's just an angry man who thinks he's better than everyone else. But I'm sure Bill is going to … »

« **STOP !** » Aiden screams.

Keffan gasps, surprised. The little magpie stands up, his eyes shining with tears of sadness ... and rage.

« **Are you so blind, Keffan?** » the chick exclaims. « **Bendy is right!** He says that humans lie to us! They exploit us! They are only liars! They only belittle us as if we were just toys! The creators lie to us, Keffan! **They lie to us!** »

The little Tunman is amazed at his friend's words. Aiden wipes his tears and sighs.

« Can you do me a favor and cover me in the afternoon? » he asks, looking at his friend.

« Why? Where do you want to go? » the kitten ask.

The chick looks at him with a small smile telling him that it's obvious... and the half Toon freezes.

« **Are you serious ?** Isn't it enough for you to risk your skin every night? »

« I don't want to stay at the studios today and Bendy is finally starting to trust me! Hopefully, it's only a matter of days before I get have the last word of the story! And here I could help him to come back to ToonTown! »

« Do you want to bring this demon to ToonTown? »

« You'll understand that we won't risk anything when you see him, Keffy, I promise you! »

Keffan frowns, annoyed that Aiden attaches so much importance to this monster rather than to his friends ... but the little magpie was as stubborn as he was small and cute. Sighing, the kitten chases a lock of hair behind his ear and grumbles:

« If I say no, you'll make me dizzy. »

Aiden smiles and jumps around his neck.

« Thanks, Kef'! You're a real friend! »

* * *

Then, without another word, he runs away, returning to ToonTown to join the Kansas City Tunnel. The chick has barely disappeared around the alley that Gandy and Jeckle leave the studios. The goose rushes to his son and hugs him.

« Keffan, I'm sorry you should have seen that. Antoine really doesn't have a heart. » he sighs, looking at his boy.

« Where is Aiden? » Jeckle asks, looking for his son.

« Oh, um ... he ... he must be somewhere around there. » the little one mutters. « I offered him a hide and seek. »

The two adults don't believe it too much ... but since Keffan has no reason to lie, they don't try to understand.

* * *

Aiden crosses the tunnel after verifying that he was alone and then goes to the studios. He enters noiselessly and advances, looking for the two Toons (the living and the soul) who reside there. He finds them sleeping against each other and Bendy finally seems perfectly calm. Boris slowly emerges, feeling a glance at him ... and freezes when he sees the chick.

« Aiden? What are you doing here? » he whispers so not to wake his friend.

« You were right for everything ... » the little magpie replies, restraining himself from crying. « Humans are bad... they take us for objects, slaves ... »

« Awww ... come on, this isn't true for all humans. Alright, come here and tell me! »

Aiden runs to hug the wolf, being careful not to wake the little devil. Bendy didn't need to be bothered by his doubts about humans. He already had enough to handle.

* * *

As the afternoon passes and Aiden is still untraceable, both parents start to worry. They had gone home, thinking to find the boy there ... but again, no trace!

« Where did he go? » Jeckle worries, hugging his husband.

« Damn Antoine! » grumbles Heckle. « If he hadn't stung his fit of racist jealousy, Aiden wouldn't have been scared and wouldn't go hiding anywhere other than in the studio! »

« Do you think he's fine? »

« Jeckle. » the other magpie sighs, lifting his chin to force his husband to look him straight in the eyes. « I know you're still scared for our chick but he's not a baby anymore. He can defend himself alone. »

« He's only six, Heckle! »

« Maybe but you don't think you're going to overdo him? Do you remember when you were pregnant? I was overprotecting you and you couldn't stand it. Aiden is like you about that. He hates being overprotected for nothing. He has to learn where his limits are all by himself. »

Jeckle sighs, lowering his head. He was protecting his son a lot, that's true ... but to say that he was overdo him? Aiden was their only child and he wasn't sure that the little one could endure the looks of some Toons too down-to-earth if they tried to get another one.

« Didn't you find him? » Gandy asked as he approached with Keffan, stopping the magpie's thoughts.

« No, we don't know where he could go to hide, Antoine must have scared him by screaming so he flew like a girl in front of a Lepew! » Heckle growled.

« Um, am I supposed to take it well? » Pepé the Looney Skunk grunts who passes at that time with his episode partner (as in real life), Penelope the Cat* who restrains herself from laughing.

Jeckle, Gandy and Keffan chuckle while Heckle smiles, embarrassed.

« Sorry, Pepé! I thought not bad! It's just one of the episode directors of the studios who stung a racist crisis against Jeckle and me and our son Aiden heard it all. Since, impossible to find him. »

« Mom? Dad ? »

The Toons (and the half-Toon) turn to the little voice and see Aiden standing nearby. He seems surprised to see that his parents are already there.

« **Aiden!** » Jeckle sighs, getting up to join his chick and hug him.

« Ah, there he is, le petit poussin! » the skunk smiled, pressing his companion against him. « Hey, my sweet peanut of brittle, we should also be thinking about having our own babies. »

« **Pepé!** » the black and white cat sweetly growls even if she smiles, amused, gently pushing her skunk lovers.

« Yuck, find a room! » Keffan grins, hugging his dad's legs while he is laughing.

« You're right, little Keffan! » the Looney replies, ruffling the boy's hair. « Are we going, my little darling? »

« See you next time, friends! » Penelope greets as she walks away.

In the arms of his mother, Aiden greets the couple, thanking the fact that the stench of Pepé is only a gag specific to his episodes and not a real feature of the Toon.

* * *

Heckle approaches his husband and son, slightly worried.

« Aiden. What you saw earlier in the studio, you don't have to worry about that. Antoine is just a big moron. And since Bill is the new director of TerryToons, Antoine is jealous and puts that on our backs. But don't worry, man! He will not hurt us! Neither mine nor your mom! »

« We will always be near you, treasure. No human can change that. » Jeckle smiled, looking at his child.

The little one looks at them, looks a little empty or... frightened ... but he forces a smile.

« Okay ... »

« Where were you this afternoon? » the father asks while his husband puts their child on the ground. « We looked for you everywhere and even Keffan couldn't say where you could be. »

« Well ... actually ... I wasn't quite on ToonTown ... »

« Where were you then? » Jeckle asks, on the verge of panic.

« I was in a studio ... and ... I made a new friend ... »

Keffan freezes when he hears that, but adults don't notice it.

« A friend? » Heckle wonders. « A Human? »

« No, it's a Toon. Like us. »

« And we know him? » Jeckle asks.

« No, he ... he doesn't come out of his studio a lot. »

Both parents look at each other, intrigued, then they smile.

« I hope we can meet him soon. » Jeckle said.

« He is very shy but I try to convince him to go out a little bit more. » Aiden says.

« Now that we know Aiden is at home, we'll be back tomorrow. » Gandy said as he walked away with Keffan.

The kitten glare the little magpie and follows his dad under the sad gaze of his friend who returns home with his parents. Something told him that he would have to explain himself with the Tunman tomorrow.

* * *

Later that night, after Aiden fell asleep (tonight, he wouldn't go to the studio because he had spent the afternoon there), Heckle and Jeckle end up in the living room.

« What do you think about this new friend story? » the slender magpie asks to his companion.

« I don't know, Jeckle. I feel like there is some real... but he's hiding something. »

« Do you want we asked him tomorrow morning? »

« No, if you ask him too much, he'll rush and shut himself in. The best thing would be to follow him and find out what he's hiding. »

« But it's impossible! We have work at the studio! We cannot let everything go on a suspicion of lies! »

Heckle thinks ... then he goes to the phone. Without a word, he dials a number and wait ... when his correspondent picks up.

« Hi Bill, it's Heckle. Tell me, do you have the number of a private detective on you? ... We have a little secret problem with Aiden. ... When do you think you can bring him? … Okay ! We find a babysitter for Aiden and we're coming. ... Yes, see you! »

« What do you mean 'we find a babysitter for Aiden and we're coming'? What do you have behind your head, you ? »

« We cannot watch Aiden ourselves so I asked Bill if he knew anyone and he can arrange an appointment tonight with the detective. »

« What detective? Human detectives don't deal with Toons business! »

« You're wrong, there's one. The one who helped Roger in 47. Eddie Valiant. »

* * *

Eddie goes in the office of the new TerryToons Director, hands in pockets and hat a bit crooked. He had been called late for an case at the studio. He still doesn't know what it is but he knows it touches a Toon child and, especially since the birth of his goddaughter Candice, he couldn't stand a child is in danger even if nothing was proven. He go face-to-face with Bill Weiss, the director, and two of the stars of the TerryToons, the two talking magpies Heckle and Jeckle.

« Thank you for coming so late, Mr Valiant. »

« I can know what it is. » the detective asks, sitting down.

« It's about our son, Aiden. » Heckle explains.

« Candice told me about him. He's a real little jerk, she said. »

« It's not the subject now. » the magpie sighs. « Aiden's been weird for a while. »

« How weird? »

« He suddenly started to dance but the weirdest thing is that he disappeared for a whole afternoon. » Jeckle adds. « At first, we thought it was because of the argument we had with one of the directors ... but he told us that he had gone to see a new friend. »

« How weird is that? It's from his age! » Eddie shrugged.

« He is only 6 years old. » the mother magpie sighs.

« It's especially that his friend is supposed to be a Toon who spends his time locked up in his studio. » Heckle adds. « Well, unless he's a new Toon and there was none, we should know him. So we'd like to know where he's going. »

« Aiden is everything for Heckle and Jeckle, Mr Valiant. » explains Bill. « And everyone loves him at the studio. We want to make sure he's not in danger. You'll be pay well and you'll only have to watch him. »

Eddie thinks for a few seconds ... then nods.

« I start tomorrow at the first hour. »

* * *

 **Here is the chapter 5 of the fiction and the discovery of the body of Boris ... as well as the arrival of a well-known character thanks to "Who framed Roger Rabbit?" Will Aiden manage to keep his secret for a long time? Will he and Keffan reconcile?**

 **Ah! Before I forget! Here are the notifications noted ***

* The TerryToons studio is sold to CBS in 1955 and Paul Terry dies in 1956. The first to have taken over the direction of the studio was Gene Deitch then he was fired and replaced by Bill Weiss who worked a lot on the cartoons of Heckle and Jeckle and those of Mighty Mouse

* This is one of the recurring characters in episodes of Pepé LePew and I found it amusing to put her as the love of Pepé to ToonTown while in the episodes, she flees constantly.

 **I hope you enjoyed this chapter :) see you next time, friends! : D**

 **Ah! PS: a small comment please: D**


	7. Chapter 6: Surveillance and New Encounte

**Inked in Mystery**

 **Chapter 6 : Surveillance and New Encounters**

The next morning, Aiden gets up after finally sleeping a full night after several weeks of nocturnal escapades. Bendy and Boris agreed with him to come and see them during the day rather than during the night. But at breakfast he looks sullen.

« Aiden? Is everything okay? » Jeckle asks, kneeling in front of his chick who seems lost in his thoughts, playing with cereals in his bowl.

« Yeah ... it's just ... I think Keffan isn't very happy that I made a new friend. »

« He's a little jealous, I think. » Heckle smiled as he approached. « You've known each other since you were babies and you've always been poked together. »

« That's probably it. He was already a little jealous when you became friends with Candice, Roger's daughter. » the slender magpie adds stroking the head of his boy. « Do you know what you could do? After your breakfast, you'll just have to go see him and you'll explain yourself, we'll meet you at Gandy's place. »

Aiden thinks and what his parents say isn't stupid. With a small smile, the little magpie jump to the necks of his parents and hug them tightly.

« I love you! » he chirps before letting himself fall back into his chair to swallow his breakfast.

* * *

Once his cereals are swallowed and his plumage is brushed, the little chick flies to the house where Gandy, SourPuss and Keffan live and knocks on the door. He vaguely hears Gandy shout: « Keffan? Can you go open, kitten? » Then nothing - until the door opens on Keffan. The white-haired kitten is first surprised to see the chick then glares at him.

« What do you want? » he growls.

« Kef '... I ... »

« Who's that, kid? » SourPuss asks.

« It's nothing, it's just Aiden! »

« Keffan, please! We need to talk! »

« Oh, you don't have enough of your 'new friend'? »

Aiden gets angry, grabs Keffan by the paw, pulls him out of the house and closes the door.

« But it's not possible to be jealous like that! » the magpie stammers.

« Maybe I have my reasons, no? To explain your escapades to your parents, you say that you made a new friend! And this friend is who!? **A demon!** A monster dripping with ink that's probably tucking you in order to eat you, and you'd rather go to his studio than play with me **EVEN** during the day! »

« I don't prefer him to you! I love you both the same way! Keffan, Bendy needs help. He's dark because he have been betrayed, but I swear he's kind. And no matter how great he is, my best friend is you! »

Keffan, who was sulking until then, calms down and turns to Aiden. He seems really worried about losing his friendship with the Tunman.

Sighing, the kitten tells him:

« Aiden, frankly you worry me. »

« I swear to you that Bendy isn't dangerous. But I still need some time to convince him that I can help him, and as soon as you see him, you'll understand. But in the meantime, I can swear on the head of my parents that he will never take your place. »

The little magpie opens his arms, asking for a hug. The kitten sighs but he goes to his friend and hugs him. He holds back his tears but he feels that the embrace of the chick is sincere.

« Do you promise? » Keffan asks, trying to hold back his tears.

« Paintbrush, paint, eraser and pencil. If I'm lying, let's dissolve my chin! » the magpie promises.

Keffan smiled, finally feeling reassured.

« Aiden! » Heckle calls, cutting short the moment between the two friends. « Come here! We have to go to the studio! »

« I'm coming, daddy! » the chick smiled. « See you later? »

« I don't know when Daddy and Papa Cat are going to the studio. » the Tunman kitten answers, shrugging his shoulders. « But I can ask Daddy if I can go alone. »

« Great, I'll see you here! »

With a large arm gesture, Aiden runs away and jumps on his father's shoulders, clutching his father's head in his little wings as Jeckle smiles as he strokes his son's cheek.

* * *

Keffan smiled as he watched his friend interact with his parents before returning home. But as he silently closes the door, he hears SourPuss and Gandy speaking in a low voice.

« I can't believe they refuse to take Keffan to their school! » the cat says indignantly. « He is the most calm and kindest child I know! »

« Yes, but he's a Tunman. » Gandy sighs. « And we are Toons besides being his parents, I don't think they're really bad, but like so many humans, they only know the Toons as jokers who make gags constantly. I cannot blame them for being cautious. »

« Maybe ... but they must get to know Keffan instead of judging foolishly! Keffan could very well have been educated by Humans if they didn't throw this little one as trash! »

« You don't need to get so angry, SourPuss... We're going to find a school that wants Toons. »

« Oh yes, and where? It's been weeks since you make a tour of schools near animation studios! » the TerryToons cat rattles, astonishing Keffan who at the same time learns why his dad was so absent lately. « And what do you have in response? ' _You know, your child, given his condition, the unstable side of his genes, doesn't seem to be appropriate for our school! Do you try schools for color kids?_ ' No but what else? If we listen to them, Keffan would be like a plague victim! »

« SourPuss, stop ... » the goose sighs, seems to be close to tears.

« And that's still the nicest! You don't know what they told me near the WarnerBros studios? ' _My school isn't a zoo or ToonTown! I refuse to take that thing support in my school!_ ' » he rage without notice the small Tunman trembling by listening to what the humans think of him while Gandy refrains from crying. « And with that one near the Disney Studios ' _It's forbid that a Toon or a Tunman enters this establishment!_ ' What is this regulation of racists yet? »

« I know it hurts you, just like it hurts me, but we cannot change the world. » the Toon try.

« Wait, you haven't heard the best! » the cat gets upset. « I went to see the MaroonStudios because Roger and Jessica are working there, it would have been handy if we had been unable to get the little one to school. Do you know what they said? ' _I won't keep this abomination with the children I care about!_ ' No, but you believe that! »

* * *

Suddenly, the cat is silent when he hears crying. He turns, without noticing the kitten running away (furious and tearful), and sees Gandy, arms on the table and face hidden in their hollow, body trembling. It reminded him of the days that preceded the Gathering of the Council before he could adopt Keffan with the permission of the other Toons. His son was so unique that no one seemed to want to give him a chance. The Toons Council had accepted that he became one of them, but the Humans simply refused this child, born of one of their own, and this prevented his child from bonding with other children outside the Toons children. His Human side needed to see other Human children but his Toon side scared the Men who repelled him like a leper and none of the Tunmen survived the eradication of the species in 1945. Keffan was unique!

« Sorry, Gandy. » SourPuss sighs as he approaches the goose, forgetting for a moment his fear of rejection. « I know you want the best for Keffan. I care about the kid as much as you. I'm his second guardian, his uncle ... but I consider him as my little one. I care about him as much as I care about you. »

Gandy stands up and plunges his teary eyes into those of SourPuss, hoping. The cat blushes as he realizes what he has just said.

« Um ... well ... I mean ... uh ... »

He is suddenly silenced by the hands of his episodes fellow who grabs his cheeks. The usually calm goose suddenly seem furious ... then he burst out laughing.

« How foolish you are! You still haven't understood that I feel the same for you? »

Without giving the cat time to understand, Gandy pulls him close to him and sticks his lips against those of the cat. He is first frozen on the spot... before hugging the goose in his arms. Their relationship had always been friendly until then but for years, he had loved Gandy in secret. Their great difference of species seeming to be an insurmountable obstacle... then Keffan had arrived and bound them even more, even though he had never dared to take the first step. But now, he knows that Gandy will always be there for him, just as they will be there for their little kitten who will go through many complicated moments in his life as a hybrid.

* * *

Keffan leaves home, furious. He had heard his two dads talked about school at the Humans World. ToonTown had everything except a school. The Toons didn't really need to go to school because they learned everything on their job but now many Toons were born. Not drawn but born! Therefore, they needed an education ... but no school accepted them. Suddenly, Aiden's words echo in his head.

 _« Bendy says humans are lying to us! They exploit us! They are only liars! They only belittle us as if we were just toys! The creators lie to us, Keffan! They lie to us! »_

« It's not true ! **It's not true !** » the kitten enrage, getting angry after everything that comes close to his claws.

He scratched trees, spoiled flowers, kicked pebbles (missing Jerry and Tweety who passing nearby) and ran off on all fours, his eyes full of tears. He didn't like Humans because of his mother, but he couldn't believe they were what the Ink Imp claimed. Humans couldn't be so bad.

* * *

Suddenly, the kitten bangs against someone and falls to the ground. When he opens his eyes, he is surprised (even horrified) to see that he just hit one of the members of the Toon Council: Felix the Cat! The black-and-white cat recovers ideas in place and straightens his head to see the little Tunman in front of him.

« Hey ! Keffan! What's happening to you, boy? » he smiled.

The kitten looks away, ashamed of hitting a member of the Toons Council. Felix notices the dark look of the child and it is far too strange for a child of this age. Standing up, the Toon cat approaches the little one and raises him gently.

« What's the matter ? You are very dark for a child Toon ... »

« I'm not a Toon ... » Keffan mumbles, his eyes filled with tears. « In fact, I am nothing at all. »

« Why do you say that ? » The Black Cat indignant.

« I'm a bastard ... » the kitten sobs, thinking back to Bendy's words the first time he saw him. « I am not a Toon entirely and I am not human enough for men to accept me as one of them. Daddy has been to all the cities that have a studio to see if I could go to school and ... they all refused. I'm too human to be a Toon actor or any other Toon job and I'm too Toon to be able to mingle with humans, even for school! »

Keffan can't help but cry. Felix sighs and kneels before him.

« Hey, Keffan. It's true that you're not completely Toon ... but never say you're nothing! You are a Tunman! A being born from the union of two universes that everything opposes. »

« What if I don't want to be this being? » the little one gets annoyed before sulking.

« I can understand that this is hard for you. » the black and white cat smiled. « But you know, it's been seven years since Gandy dared to face the others to give you a chance to live while many would leave you for dead. Paul Terry and ToonTown asked us, the members of the Grand Council, to choose. And we decided you were a Toon, like all of us. Even if many don't understand it, you and I, we are one! »

* * *

Keffan raises his head to see Felix smile at him. Like many Toons Cats, he had a pretty strong connection with the little Tunman. Maybe it came from the feline side of the boy... but anyway, Felix can't stand to see tears on the cheeks of a child (especially that he was going to be a father in a short time). With a delicate gesture, he wipes the saltwater pearls, making the boy smile, then he takes him by the shoulder and drags him into ToonTown, humming:

 _As you go through life you'll see_

 _There is so much that we_

 _Don't understand_

Keffan observes the other Toons who have fun and laugh. All this is very usual for Keffan, but this time, everything seems dull to him. He feels Felix caressing his head and looks up at the black cat.

 _And the only thing we know_

 _Is things don't always go_

 _The way we planned_

The little Tunman seems undecided, misunderstanding how the Toons who are always so happy can be worried about not predicting everything about their future. When recording episodes, they had a script to follow and there, and only there, they had to really predict everything. At ToonTown, predictions were rare. The kitten suddenly hears two cries: a ''BipBip!'' and an ''Arriba Arriba Andale Arriba!'' with a playful Mexican accent. Two of ToonTown's fastest Toons, Road Runner and Speedy Gonzales, run past them, certainly having fun seeing which of them is the fastest ... but the wind they cause topples over the little Tunman.

 _But you see everyday that we'll never turn away_

 _When it seems all your dreams come undone!_

The two Toons stop immediately and then they come back to them. The bird helps Keffan to straighten up and the mouse starts to run quickly on the body to dust him under the amused look of the cat and the laughter of the little one.

 _We will stand by your side_

 _Filled with hope and filled with pride!_

Once Keffan clean, the two Toons greet their fellow and then resume their race shouting happily. Felix lowers his eyes to the little Tunman who allows himself a small smile by watching the two 'Toons-rockets' disappear in the distance under the laughter of others.

 _We are more than we are_

 _We are one!_

The kitten looks at Felix, intrigued. The black cat smiles and leads Keffan after him into ToonTown, climbing trees like normal cats. Keffan's feline instincts force him to follow the adult ... but he sighs by perching on the branch of an old trunk above a small pond and humming as he watches his reflection.

 _If there's so much I must be_

 _Can I still just be me_

 _The way I am?_

 _Can I trust in my own heart_

 _Or am I just one part_

 _Of some big plan?_

A shadow suddenly falls on him, forcing him to raise his eyes to see Felix who perched on the trunk at his side and who looks at the sky with a melancholy smile by resuming:

 _Even those who are gone_

 _Are with us as we go on_

 _Your journey has only begun!_

The Toon cat lowers tender eyes on the little Tunman.

 _Tears of pain tears of joy_

 _One thing nothing can destroy_

 _Is our pride deep inside_

 _We are one!_

Ruffling Keffan's hair, Felix leapt from the stump and ran away on all fours. The little amused Tunman rushes after him and pursues him in the city of Toons. Some grumpy ''old guys'' look at the half-Toon with disgust ... but the vast majority got used to seeing this little half-human half-Toon and smile, greeting him with big arm gestures.

 _We are one you and I_

 _We are like the earth and sky!_

 _One family under the sun!_

Felix leads Keffan to the TerryToons Studios (knowing that anyway, his parents would find him there) and then stands up, turning to the child with a big smile.

 _All the wisdom to lead_

 _All the courage that you need_

 _You will find when you see_

 _We are one!_

Keffan is intrigued by the words of Felix, as if he really had trouble understanding it... but the black cat Toon smiles and kneels before him.

« As long as you are here with us, Keffan, you will be one of us. One day, you will understand. » the cat says before hugging the kitten.

The little half-Toon purrs, reassured that he doesn't have to understand everything today. Felix gives him a light lick (or what's called a cat kiss) that makes him laugh, then the Toon stands up and walks away. But before going out, he said to the little kitten:

« If you ever need to talk to someone other than your parents, don't hesitate to come find me. »

With one last smile, he leaves the studios, leaving Keffan sitting on the steps of his dad's caravan.

* * *

Aiden mutters, looking up to see that Eddie Valiant is still watching him. The detective is sitting not far from him and, as soon as the chick moves the slightest feather, the eyes of the Human follow him attentively. What bad luck ! His parents (and the new Big Boss Bill) had asked Eddie to keep an eye on him for where he was going. So it would be him the 'nanny' until they have answers by the detective.

« Damn, he annoys me! » he blows hard enough for the human to hear.

« Do you need help, kiddo? » he asks as he looks up from the newspaper he's leafing through.

« No, that's good, Mr. Eddie. » the little magpie sighs, taking out his notebook and scribbling.

He isn't careful to hide it because (he hopes) the detective doesn't know Bendy. Valiant might not have been very young anymore, but he wasn't old enough to meet Bendy... especially since the Toon had never left his studio.

* * *

Suddenly, he hears a voice with a light hair on the tongue that cries happily:

« **Hey ! Eddie!** »

All turn around and see a Toon who came to the studio quite often even if he wasn't even working there: Roger Rabbit, the star of the MaroonStudios. He often came to TerryToons Studios because his daughter (who happily holds his hand) had friends here.

« Ah! If I was expecting to see you there, you! » the detective smiled. « What are you doing here, Roger? »

« I don't have a babysitter for Candice today so I thought about bringing her to TerryToons Studios to play with Aiden and Keffan. »

Taking advantage of the distraction, Aiden gets up and runs to the exit ... except that Eddie notices it.

« Excuse me, Roger! » the human exclaims, rising with a bound to follow the fledgling under the intrigued gaze of Roger and Candice.

« What's up, dad? » the little girl asks.

« I don't know ... » her father mumbles before following his detective friend.

Seeing that he is spotted, Aiden bifurcates to the boxes and, seeing Keffan on the steps of Gandy's caravan, he runs to his friend.

« **Keffy, Keffy!** » he calls, taking the attention of Tunman.

« What's the matter with you? » he wonders as he sees the little magpie panicked.

« I have a big problem! »

« Oh? What kind ? »

« The ''human detective annoying'' kind! » the young bird grumbles, pointing behind him.

Keffan raises his head just in time to see Eddie (whom he has sometimes seen at ToonTown) who enters the room looking for something or someone's gaze ... and the human sits calmly as soon as he spots Aiden.

« Hey, what's he doing here? » the kitten wonders. « Did something in the studio? »

« No ! He's here for me! » the chick whispers in a low voice.

« Huh? »

« Well, Dad, Mom and Bill asked Mr. Eddie to watch me to see where I was going. »

« Ah! Your getaway at DevilLand? » the Tunman growls.

« Stop! He's not like that! »

Keffan looks at Aiden with an air of saying, ''Of course, I believe you''. Even though the fledgling assures him that Bendy doesn't want them any harm, his first encounter with the imp remains stained in his memory.

« Keffy, believe me! You have to help me make a diversion so that Bendy can be notified! »

« And you want me to do what? That I stitch Aunt Aglae*'s dresses and dance the Hula? »

The little magpie refrains from giggling.

« Oh no ! There, you dream! » the kitten bursts. « I'm going to find something else! »

Keffan thinks, looking for what might help his feathered friend ... when he thinks of something that touches him even though he wasn't born at the time.

« Okay ! Place to the artists! » he smiled, cracking his knuckles.

* * *

Eddie watches the Toons waving to prepare for their episodes and sees Roger arrive with his daughter ... when Keffan walks over to him with a face he wants neutral. Planting himself in front of the Human, the little Tunman asks:

« Is it you, Mr. Eddie Valiant? The Human detective who helps the Toons? »

« Yes it's me. »

« Tell me, is it true that you don't help the half-Toons before? » he adds innocently.

Everyone chokes on hearing the child's ''innocent'' question (even Aiden is frozen on the spot) then turns to the Human. The detective is frozen on the spot, his eyes fixed on the little one, shame readable on his face. Squeaking his throat, he answers:

« It's true ... in 1945, I didn't do anything to help half-Toons ... »

« Why ? You don't like them? A Tunman hurt you? It's not very nice to not have helped others because of one! That, in general, is the bad guys doing that. »

Candice frowns as she looks at Keffan, wondering what game the Tunman is playing ... when Eddie comes out of the studio stomping, missing shoving his friend Roger and the little one. She watches her godfather leave before turning to Keffan who calmly returns to the caravan where Aiden is waiting.

« Dad ? What's up with Uncle Eddie? » the girl asks, intrigued.

Roger bites his lip, worried when he sees the face of his human friend. Kneeling in front of his daughter, he forces a big smile to reassure her and says:

« What if you went to play with your friends, Princess? Dad's going to talk a bit with Uncle Eddie and he's coming back to get you. Okay ? »

Candice finds it weird but she smiles and nods. The rabbit rubs his nose against his little wonder's who laughs happily before getting up to run after Eddie. The little rabbit-human looks at him until he leave... then she walks away into the studio, happily hopping, looking for her friends from TerryToons studio.

* * *

Aiden watches Eddie go and turns to Keffan.

« Haven't you been a little hard there? »

« Hey ! To great evils the great remedies! » the kitten replies, shrugging his shoulders. « And then, that's all I found to make him leave! »

« Yeah, but here you almost treated him as a murderer. »

« I'll apologize to him later. With a sad look and beaten puppy eyes, it will go by itself. »

« Yeah ... anyway, thank you! And I'm counting on you to cover me! » the fledgling smiled, flapping his wings to fly away.

« Huh? Are you going right now? »

The chick doesn't answer him and takes off, flying to a skylight. He turns and, after a slight sign to his friend, he comes out like a thief. Keffan sighs as he watches Aiden leave the studios.

« But of course, I'm covering you ... » he mumbles, chasing a strand of hair. « He'll kill me, that kid. »

« Oh yeah ! It won't make a big loss for the stage! » a girl's voice laughs.

A voice that Keffan recognizes and that he would have liked not to hear, especially now! But when he turns, he does indeed face Candice Rabbit!

* * *

Smiling, the girl with long red hair leans towards Keffan.

« What are you doing, Keffy? »

« Nothing, Candice ... » the kitten grunts.

« So why do you say Aiden is going to kill you? »

« Don't you have carrots to eat? »

« Come on! Tell me ! Please ! » she chirps.

The kitten growls. He and Candice got along as a dog and cat (well ... cat and rabbit) and often quarreled, especially because Candice always jumped on him…. well, she always jumped everywhere (probably because of her rabbit side) ... but Aiden and her were very friends. Not as much as the two boys but close enough, surely ''because'' of the fact that they are both Baby-Born-Toons. And since he had sworn to say nothing to the parents ...

« First, you must swear you won't say anything! » he exclaims suddenly, frightening the half-doe.

« Oh okay! Okay ! Brush, paint, eraser and pencil! If I denounce, dissolve my chin! » she promises before sitting on the floor, her elbows resting on her knees and her head in her hands, waiting for the rest.

Keffan sighs. Why did she have to surprise them?

* * *

Later, after long explanations, the two children (half) Toons go to the accursed studio. Like Aiden, Candice isn't very worried about the pace of the studio. She is about to enter through the front door but ...

« **Stop it, silly!** » Keffan indignantly grabs his arm. « Come in by the door, it's the best way to get Bendy and I'm holding on to my skin, ok? »

« Ok ok! Sorry ! But how do we get in? »

The kitten takes his wrist and takes her with him to the old air vents of the studio.

« So cool! » the little rabgirl* smiles. « It's like a spy story! »

Candice begins to hum a tune smiling and annoying the Tunman.

« Don't you want to shut up five minutes? » he mutters.

The girl looks up like a princess by smoothing her red dress and continues to move forward.

* * *

At a bend in a corridor, she straightens the yellow blue spotted bow that she tied in her hair when Keffan freezes in front of a screened opening.

« Pst! Candice! Come see ! There ! It's him ! Bendy the Demon! » he fumbles.

The girl runs to the gate and sees the little black and white Toon humming while leafing through old files. His gaze then falls on the photo frame of the office and he grabs a brush (which he passes beforehand in his mouth) to add black paint on the face of one of the characters who surround them, Boris and him. Candice is subjugated. Like Aiden, she can't believe that this little devil is a monster ... but Keffan knows what he saw.

« Now we're out! » the Tunman kitten trembles. « If he spots us, he's eating us! »

The Half-Toon runs to the exit... but Candice catches his tail to keep him close to her. Except that by feeling his tail be taken, the kitten fels and spits with fear trying to cling with his claws.

« But calm down, big dumb! » the girl peeves. « I'm the one who holds it, your tail! »

« **OH COME ON! WHY DO YOU AND AIDEN NEVER PREVENT WHEN YOU DO THINGS LIKE THAT ?!** » the boy gets upset.

« Because ... oh and you wouldn't understand! After all, you're only half-Toon! » she laughs, pinching his cheek.

« That it! Take me for a fool! » the kitten growls, trying to scratch her.

Suddenly, they hear noise, like a jostled chair. As Keffan tries to escape, Candice rushes to the gate ... and bursts out laughing.

« Is that your monster? » she hisses.

Intrigued, the Tunman approaches ... and freezes seeing Bendy play like a kitten following a ray of light.

« I'm dreaming here ... » Keffan suffocated as he watched the scene.

* * *

Bendy continues to play with the beam of light that Boris and Aiden (hidden behind the door) move around the corners of the room. The imp isn't even aware of the chick's presence until he hears his chuckle. He stops immediately and turns to see his only two friends.

« Aiden! » he smiles as he straightened up.

He runs to Boris and takes the fledgling to give him a hug. In the pipe, Keffan is so captivated that he presses on the grid to see better ... except that the piece worn by the years give way under the weight of the two children. In a cry of fear due to their sudden loss of balance, Candice and Keffan fall heavily into the office, startling the three Toons present. Bendy poses Aiden and starts to roll his back while dripping with fear ... but when the cloud of dust falls, he is surprised to see only children.

« What, what does that mean? » he mumbles without understanding.

« Candice? Keffan? » the young bird is surprised, attracting all eyes towards him.

« Hi Aidy! » the little rabbit-human chirps ... before being elbowed by Keffan to silence her.

Both of them turn to Bendy. The little Toon seems completely lost.

« Can you explain, Aiden? » Boris indignantly.

« Well... um ... » the chick stammers as he walks over to his friends from ToonTown. « Bendy and Boris, ... Candice Rabbit and Keffan Goose! » he presents with a forced smile before turning to others. « Guys, ... Bendy and Boris! »

« Hi ! » the little human rabbit happily smiles as Keffan prepares to flee.

Boris smiles at the children's little faces (Aiden embarrassed, Candice joyful and Keffan scared) while Bendy seems indignant. Trembling, he moves away (dripping the ink from his forehead) and then runs out shouting (in a trembling voice):

« Liars ... **ALL THE LIARS! LIARS ! »**

« **Bendy wait!** » Aiden screams trying to catch up but Boris catches up with him without a word.

Without a word, he makes him understand that Bendy must be alone. But the chick then turns to his friends, annoyed.

« Good work for presentation, guys! Especially you, Kef! I thought you were afraid of Bendy! »

« Well, what am I supposed to do when Miss Sautillons roasts us and asks where are you going? » the kitten gets upset, pointing the little Rabbit behind him. « She would have harassed me with questions and alerted parents! And I can't lie! »

« Do you know what she says to you, Miss Sautillons, Tunman? » the girl is annoyed.

Boris gives a little laugh, the bickering reminds him of those between Bendy and his ''episode enemy'' Alice Angel. As an angel and a demon, they struggled with each other and fought constantly. Except that, very quickly, his smile disappears thinking back to Bendy who must have felt betrayed by the sudden entrance of Aiden's friends.

* * *

Meanwhile, Roger had finally found Eddie in the place where he never wanted to see him again: in a bar on the same street as the TerryToons Studio. He walks up to him with a frown and intervenes just in time to stop the Human from starting his drink, putting his gloved hand on the glass. Eddie (although he recognizes this hand) is surprised. He looks at Roger and then looks back at the ground with a sigh.

« Eddie! » the rabbit suddenly makes. « All this way! »

« It helps me to retire. » the detective defends.

« No, it's the opposite ! It only delays it! Eddie! If you want this sentence to go away, you have to face it! And you already did it once! What's stopping you now? » Roger Rabbit asks.

Eddie rubs his eyes and sighs.

« That's the half-Toon kid, isn't it? » the rabbit asks. « It was just a question, Eddie. » he said, trying to reason with the human.

« Yes, but ... you were there too! You heard it! This tone of voice, full of ... accusation and ... anger. » Eddie said in his defense.

He still looks down and then he goes on:

« I committed genocide on a whole species! » he whines suddenly.

That surprised the Toon who doesn't waste a second to comfort the detective.

« What are you still talking about, Eddie? It's not you who eradicated the Tunmans! It was Doom! » Roger reasoned.

« **YES BUT I LET HIM DO!** » Eddie rages suddenly. « I abandoned them ... to a horrible destiny. I had dropped the half-Toons. I had dropped the Toons. I had dropped Dolores then everyone ... even Teddy ... I had dropped everything. » he cries suddenly, hiding his face in his hand.

Roger wanted to tell him that it was just the day he was trying to recover from his brother's death ... but the more he thought, the more he thought it wasn't a good approach. Then he finally got an idea! He taps the human's shoulder next to him, catching his attention.

« Come with me ! You have to meet someone! » he said, walking to the men's bathroom.

Eddie follows him, although very little convinced by where the rabbit went. But who knew what the Toon was hiding? Roger opens the door and gestures for Eddie to go inside, and that's what he did.

* * *

Once inside, it was dark because the switch was outside the toilet. But maybe that someone preferred black (and toilet).

« It's a Toon-like creature. It can't die from blows or injuries. Okay, it's a little more eternal than us, but just like us, humans are afraid or don't know how to understand it! » Roger's voice explain in the dark, intriguing Eddie. « Every being has one and sometimes we ask for answers to our questions! » Roger answers before turning on the light.

Eddie jumps a little by the change of lighting then he looks in front of him the mirror then approaches to be finally face-to-face with this creature who resembled him traits for features: his reflection.

For a moment, Eddie is lost. Roger smiled as he watched his detective friend.

« So ? What do you see here and now? » the rabbit asks.

« Seriously? » the human mumbles before looking back into his reflections. « Here and now, I see a poor fellow who has become embroiled in sorrow to the point of letting down those he had sworn to help when they needed him the most. »

Roger sighs and slaps Eddie on the arm, moaning:

« But what a flap-joy you are! Stop a bit of seeing everything in black! » the Toon gets indignant, jumping to hold on to his friend's arm and be at his height. « Me, what I see is a great friend, always ready to do anything to help the Toons but who often needs to be reminded that he isn't alone despite what he believes. And also, a man who often tends to take the Toon woes as his fault while he has nothing to reproach himself. »

Eddie frowns ... then he realizes that Roger was trying to show him that despite everything that had happened to him in the past, he was still the same. His actions could still be questionable and he had locked himself into loneliness and sorrow at Teddy's death, refusing joy and laughter, but deep down inside he was still Eddie Valiant. The Human Detective who works with the Toons, offering them Justice just like Humans. Seeing that his friend finally understands, the Toon rabbit returns to the floor with a smile.

« Keffan didn't think badly. He is just a little boy who wants to know who he is and where his role in this world is, like all the little Born-Toons. Except that him, he has a human side that crumples! Besides, perhaps you could help him to understand that side! I'm sure he'd love it! »

Eddie smiles ... as he rethinks why he ended up facing Keffan in the first place.

« **Oh shit !** » he exclaims, without thinking of the Toon next to him, as he comes out of the toilet.

« **Hey ! Eddie, what's wrong with you?** » Roger shouted following him.

The detective comes out of the bar running without paying for his drink (which he didn't even touch), followed by the Marron Studios rabbit. Except that the owner of the bar isn't for consumption (even if not consumed) free.

« Hey ! You didn't pay me! »

Roger stops dead, furious, then returns to the bar. He grabs the glass and says:

« Wait! Must consume before paying! »

Then he throws the contents of the glass at the bartender's face.

« **HERE ! And keep it, your additive dirt!** » he grumbles, resting the empty glass. « **HEY ! EDDIE! WAIT FOR ME !** » he adds, running after his friend under the laughter of customers watching the bartender wiping his face grumbling.

* * *

Eddie returns to TerryToons Studios as fast as he can and then looks for Aiden everywhere. In the studios, in the boxes, in the cupboards with accessories, but impossible to find the little magpie. Arrived in front of the caravan of Gandy Goose and SourPuss, he looks for Keffan... except that he sees no trace of the Tunman. No more than he saw Candice when her goddaughter was still jumping around his neck as soon as she saw him. Gandy then leaves his caravan with a script in hand ... when he is stopped by Valiant.

« Hey ! Gandy! Have you seen the little ones here? » he asks to the goose.

« The little ones? »

« Aiden, Keffan and Candice! Didn't you see them? »

« Well... Keffan must be somewhere here! Felix told me he brought him there but for the others, ... »

« He was alone in the studio? » the human is astonished.

« Well ... he must have heard the conversation between SourPuss and me about the school and ... »

« **CANDICE !** »

Both jump at Roger's yell. The rabbit frantically searches for his daughter, whom he can't find.

« **CANDICE ! CANDICE, MY PRINCESS ! WHERE ARE YOU !?** »

« What is happening ? » Bill gets indignant as he walks in, followed by Heckle and Jeckle.

« The little Candice Rabbit has disappeared. » Eddie says.

« What? »

« And Aiden? Where is he ? » Jeckle worries.

« Surely with her! And I bet you Keffan is with them too! »

« Keffan? » Sourpuss is surprise, approaching. « But what does that mean? »

« It means that as soon as they come back, it will be necessary to watch these three! » Eddie mumbled, thrusting his hands into his pockets, feeling that he was far from finished with this affair if these three fellows had allied themselves.

* * *

At the SillyVision, Aiden and Boris (followed by Keffan and Candice) quietly enter Henry's office. Bendy is there and draws softly with the ink flowing from his finger as big black tears run down his cheeks. The little magpie cannot stand to see tears on his friend's cheeks, especially knowing what he had previously experienced because of Joey Drew (Candice and Keffan having been informed), he runs to the little imp.

« Bendy ... »

« Leave me alone ! » the Imp whispered.

« Bendy, I didn't lie to you! I swear ! Keffan and Candice came from themselves! What do you believe ? That I would have become your friend to hurt you? »

« **Why not ?** » the Toon growls, turning to Aiden by wiping his tears, leaving some big black spots on his cheeks. « **The last time I trusted someone, he destroyed everything I had! All I loved! ALL !** »

Aiden jumps a bit ... but Bendy begins to cry, hurt by his dark memories. He was tired of those memories and betrayals that led to his abandonment and forgetfulness of all! Not to mention the Toons who mistook him for a monster when he was the victim.

Candice bites her lips then thinks... before plunging her hand into her hammerspace to get out a pretty bouquet of pink flowers. Smiling, she gives a light tap on the wall to warn of her presence and then advance.

« Here! Sorry to scare you! » she said, holding out the bouquet. « But it was I who forced Keffan to lead us here. I didn't want to believe him when he told me that Aiden was playing with a 'Demon'. »

The kitten hides more behind the door, still uncomfortable... when Bendy grabs one of the flowers of the bouquet. He looks at him for a moment, sniffs at it... then (to Keffan's astonishment) he eat it. Aiden chuckles a bit at the sight on Candice's face that seems intrigued by this reaction of the devil.

« Bendy is a vegetarian! » he explains. « He only eats flowers and vegetables! »

Keffan freezes and turns to Boris, who laughs softly, shaking his head. Candice then smiles and, placing the bouquet on the floor, she squeezes Bendy in her arms, surprising the imp who misses spitting his flower.

« **Me too, I love the flower salad! You'll see ! We will be great friends!** »

Keffan chuckles as Aiden and Boris burst out laughing. Bendy is a little lost a few seconds... then smiled by patting the head of the rabgirl.

Boris (recovering from his laughter) then gently push the little Tunman to his friend imp. The magpie and the human rabbit smile and quietly encourage him to go away to leave them alone, face-to-face. The kitten nervously takes his tail and sways on his feet. Bendy stands there watching him, waiting patiently ... then the little half-Toon begins to mumble:

« I'm sorry, Bendy ... I ... I didn't judge you very well without knowing you and... in fact, I was jealous of you because Aiden was constantly coming to see you ... but I didn't want to believe it was because you really needed help... Aiden told me what the Humans did to you and... I understand you want them... so ... since I'm a Tunman ... »

Bendy suddenly cuts him off by grabbing the little one by the shoulders, staring at him intensely with a neutral air ... before hugging the child into his arms. Keffan is surprised by this reaction and ...

« You're not like them... » Bendy smiled as he pulled away to see the child's face. « You have the soul of a Human but the heart of a Toon. You are like all of us, a Toon. In fact, now that I understand your fear, I tell myself that you and me ... »

« We are one ? » Keffan finishes.

Aiden and Candice frown, intrigued... but Bendy and Boris smile, pleasantly surprised that such a young child is able to understand that. But at this moment, the words of Felix become clear in the mind of the Tunman. Despite his own differences, he was like any Toon despite his human side. And so him, Bendy or any ToonTown Toon, they were one! One and the same heart that sought only one thing: happiness for them and for others!

* * *

After spending some time introducing themselves and discovering the episodes of the little dancing demon, the three littles of ToonTown go back to the TerryToons studios. But as soon as they walk through the studio door, someone shouts:

« **HEY ! Here they are ! The little ones came back!** »

The words are barely pronounced as a red flash emerges from the boxes and rushes to the little ones, catches Candice and holds her tightly in his arms. The lightning turns out to be Roger Rabbit, overjoyed and in tears to see his daughter safe and sound.

« **Candice! My princess ! Don't scared me like this anymore, sweetie!** « he sobs, covering his daughter with kisses.

Keffan and Aiden look at each other giggling ... when the little magpie finds himself caught in his mother's squeeze full of sobs and the kitten is also choking in his dad's arms.

« But where were you, all three of you? » Heckle indignantly rejoins his husband and son.

All the children look at each other then Aiden turns to his parents and, seeing Eddie coming behind the Toons, the little magpie answers:

« I asked to Keffan if he could distract Mr. Valiant while I went to tell the situation to my new friend. They wanted to meet him and he is very shy ... »

« But who is this new friend? » SourPuss insists ... before Gandy calms him down.

« Aiden, my little man! » the goose intervenes approaching the chick, leaving the kitten with his 'new' lover. « We have nothing against you making new friends but ... we are your parents and we are worried about you. So, if you could introduce him to us ... »

« **NO !** » the three children exclaim.

The adults around them jump of surprise... but Aiden is recovering quickly.

« Uh ... in fact... he's very shy and he's not coming out of his studio. I already had to prepare him a lot for meeting Keffan and Candice, it will take me a lot more time to convince him to meet you all. But I promise you he's nice. We risk nothing. »

The other two nodded, smiling. Adults aren't convinced by the children's words, but neither Aiden nor Keffan really knows how to lie. So, they have no reason (and no desire) to force the little ones to tell them who their new friend is. But Eddie is determined to find the end of the story.

* * *

 **This is chapter 6 of "Inked in the Mystery" and the meetings between Bendy, Keffan and Candice. And add a great song of the "Lion King 2" and FINALLY Gandy and SourPuss become a couple ^^**

 **Well, I admit, with Foxiso we were a bit hard with Eddie ... but I liked this scene and we wanted to show that Roger and Eddie are now very friends (Eddie is even the godfather of the little Candice) but that Eddie sometimes needed help to cheer him up. And some rabbit to prevent him from becoming alcoholic again ^^**

 **In your opinion, now that the three little ones are friends with our little dancing devil, will Eddie find the end of the story? Is Bendy safe? Will they succeed in convincing him that they can help him find his place in the Toons?**

 **Answers ... in the next chapter ^^**

...

 **Ah! I forgot that! Notifications rated ***

* It seems to me that Gandy's girlfriend in "The One Man Navy" is named like that.

* Shortcut of "rabbit-girl"

 **See you next time :D and leave a small comment (free but which encourages me: D)**


	8. Chapter 7: Good times forever?

**Inked in Mystery**

 **Chapter 7 : Good times forever?**

The following weeks, the three children took turns to find a way to escape Eddie's surveillance by linking up a little more each day with Bendy. The imp opened to the little ones every day a little more, revealing a happy Toon who loved dance more than anything. As much as he loved to dance on swing time or Charleston, he preferred to be guided on ballet and found himself a very graceful dancer, as light as a feather and twirling like a bird.

While teaching this grace to Candice (who found this dance style very beautiful), Bendy also spent long hours teaching swing time to the little ones. And to the surprise of all, Keffan was a great dancer. Boris joked that his biological father Toon was perhaps a swing time dancer who had given him his talent in his genes ... but Keffan didn't care about this biological father. Now that he had found a Toon quality, he was planning to maintain it at all costs. In ToonTown, summer had made way for the fall and everything was getting ready for the big autumn holidays like Halloween and Thanksgiving. No school had accepted the little Tunman for this year ... but the kitten had reassured his parents by showing that he knew how to dance.

* * *

On the other hand, the combination of these three ''lovely'' toddlers had caused Eddie some very funny adventures. In order to escape the detective, the children built a new plan every day. It could go from the all-silly diversion with firecrackers in an accessory wardrobe to force the Human to leave by any means. While Valiant thought this cast would only last a few days, the weeks accumulated to become months. Only, after a while, all the good things have an end and no more trick can escape the reality ... and that's what the little ones will discover.

* * *

 _October 1959:_

In TerryToons 'studio, Keffan, Candice and Aiden are gathered in the parents' box.

« Look what I did for Bendy! » the rabgirl tweets, showing a colorful drawing of the imp and the three children with beautiful paper flowers stuck around them.

« But shout louder, big beast! Let everyone hear you! » Keffan moaned as he finished his origami.

« Very pretty, Candy ... » the chick mumbles, focused on his drawing.

« It's Candice ... » the rabgirl sighs. « And what do you do with your drawing? It's been 5 minutes that you scribble and erase. »

« I want it to be perfect! It's a project to get Ben out of the studio. »

Candice and Keffan look at each other, surprised because Bendy had never shown the desire to leave the SillyVision even if changing air wouldn't hurt him after all he has lived.

* * *

Suddenly, someone knocks on the door, forcing the children to hide their ''art pieces'' and to release a pseudo board game. Looking up, they see Jeckle running his head inside.

« We'll have to go, children. But Mr Valiant is here if you need. »

« Ok mom. » Aiden smiled, pretending to focus on their game.

« And this time, don't make him crap! » the magpie grumbles gently, forcing the children to lift their heads, looking innocent.

« Us? Make Uncle Eddie crap? » Candice cries indignantly. « No way ! »

« We will be calm as images! » Keffan promises, crossing his fingers behind his back.

The talking magpie looks at the little ones, looking suspicious ... then he sighs with a smile.

« Well. See you later, little ones! »

« See you later ! » the three children answer before doing those in their game.

Jeckle finally leaves and, as soon as he hears nothing, Aiden gets up and runs to see the door. Nobody ... except Eddie at the end of the hall reading the newspaper.

« It's ok ! We can go ! » he smiled, turning to his friends.

« What have you prepared for today, Candice? » the little Tunman asks, putting their presents for the little dancing demon in his bag.

« Mom taught me how to make macarons last night! » the rabgirl smiles, taking her bag, proudly taking out a small box with a red bow. « So I've planned some sleepy chocolate for Uncle Eddie! »

« Do you think he'll agree to swallow them? » the magpie asks. « After what happened to him with your apple donuts with laxative icing! »

Keffan laughs. He wouldn't like to be in the detective's place that day. Especially since, seeing that Papa Chat (who accepted this appellation recently) had told him that night at dinner, he had been REALLY sick! Candice rolls her eyes.

« Well, in fact, I put too much in the frosting. »

« Fortunately he was here and not elsewhere. » the kitten chuckles. « They were able to give him the meds of the night watchman. »

The three little ones burst out laughing but they made a promise to apologize to the detective once Bendy got out of trouble.

* * *

Eddie finishes reading stock prices when his goddaughter Toon approaches him with a smile.

« Hi, Uncle Eddie! » she chirps with her innocent little face.

« Ah! This is the most beautiful of the three little terrors. » the Human jokes while folding his newspaper. « Is there a problem, Candice? »

« No no ! It's just that last night, Mom taught me how to make macaroons! So I did some for you! » the little girl smiles, holding out the box she's holding. « I made it chocolate because you don't like carrots in cakes. »

Valiant frowns a little at the little box, looks at the little Toon girl with a look of suspicion but the small smile of the girl makes him crack. He takes the box and smiles.

« It's not like the donuts? »

« Uncle Eddie! I already told you I'm sorry! I really don't know how I managed to mistake on that! »

Even if he doesn't say anything, Eddie has a look that says a lot. With a small smile, he puts the box down.

« I'll taste it a little later, Candice. I just eat my breakfast. »

The little rabbit smiles and nods before hopping happily to Heckle's and Jeckle's lodge where Aiden and Keffan are waiting for her. Eddie greets them quickly and they close the door. The detective benefits that the little ones don't look at him and open the box. Taking one of the macaroons, he moves away a little in the studio.

* * *

In the lodge, Aiden makes sure no one is listening to them ... then he turns to his friend.

« So ? »

« It's not for now. He has breakfast not long ago. » the girl replied, struggling.

« Only? It will be 10:30 am ! » Keffan wonders.

« Well, what do you want? Uncle Eddie is only a detective. If he isn't on a case, he doesn't get up too early. Unless Aunt Dolores will wake him up. »

« Well, well, we just have to wait. » the little magpie said, taking out a comic book from his hammerspace.

Candice pulls out a coloring book while Keffan decides to make a solitaire with one of his Papa Chat's card games. SourPuss had taught him the game when the Tunman had caught him playing, one day nobody needed him and Gandy was away.

* * *

An hour later, Aiden risks an eye out of the box. As Eddie is out of his place down the hall, the little magpie beckons to his friends. The three children leave (Keffan carrying his filled bag) and head for the end of the corridor. They slip their heads and see the detective on a couch that serves in the sets. The human seems deeply asleep. The little ones look at each other with a smile and then walk towards him. Aiden and Candice gently pat him to see if he's waking up... but Eddie continues to breathe calmly, growling a little but staying deeply asleep. Keffan then pushes a little cry to test if he pretends... but no reaction. The boys gig and start going out ... but Candice stays behind.

« What are you doing ? » Keffan growls in a low voice.

« Hold on ! » the little Rabbit said, tipping her godfather's hat over the eyes of the Human. « Here ! It's more realistic like that! »

The three little ones go away, chuckling softly so as not to alert the studio and then they go out ... without noticing Eddie opening an eye while straightening his hat.

* * *

Thanking the fact that he is used to Toons tests, Valiant rises noiselessly and follows the children ... when he stops in front of a small Dingbat* asleep beside a remnant of macaroon.

« Sorry, little guy. » the detective whispers, putting a letter next to the sleeping Toon.

On the paper, there is a message for the parents of the 'little monsters'.

 _Dingbat just helped me escape a trap of the little ones so do not scold him when he wakes up. I started in their spinning to see where they were going. We will soon have the end of this story._

 _Eddie Valiant_

Now sure that little Toon Joker (who annoys a lot of people with his jokes and his thoughts) won't be punished for nothing, Eddie starts following the children.

* * *

The three friends return to ToonTown without seeing the Human behind them (especially because they don't pay attention because they think he is asleep) and head for a neighborhood that seems abandoned. Intrigued, the detective approaches ... but quickly hides behind a wall when Aiden makes sure no one sees them. After the check, the three children slip between the boards and run into the tunnel. Eddie wait a bit and then step forward, surprised to see one of ToonTown's passages blocked in this way. He takes a look and sees the children moving further and further away. Seeing no other way, he grabs one of the planks and pulls it off. He does the same again until he can have passed.

The tunnel is dark and, seeing the footprints in the dust, only the children went there. Eddie frowns but walks forward without getting out a flashlights. It might alert the little ones. So, silently, he advances, reaches the end of the tunnel... and he is surprised to see an abandoned street in Kansas City. Eddie watches the surroundings... and spots the kids coming into what looks like an old abandoned studio.

« What are they doing in there? » he wonders before approaching.

Taking out his camera from the inside pocket of his raincoat, Valiant takes some photos of the building in case the parents know what is this place and then he looks for a point of observation. The few windows are hindered by very old planks. Some even start to rot. Eddie then uses his pocket knife to make a small hole and see ... but the pieces seem abandoned, the walls covered with ink stains, papers or film reels left on the floor and dusty furniture.

Mumbling, Eddie is looking for another place to see what's going on inside... when he notices the vent pipes, very wide. Big enough to hold a man of his size on his knees. The detective hangs his device around his neck and opens the conduit. Taking a deep breath, he slips into the passage and, trying to make as little noise as possible, he walks in search of the children. He then hears laughter and, approaching a ventilation grill, he observes. The human frowns at seeing the children laugh with two Toons he has never seen: a small black and white little demon and a transparent and slightly blue wolf. The canine stares at the scene while smiling as the devil dances with the children on an old rhythm of the 30s. Now sure that it is the secret friend of the children, Eddie doesn't lose a second and seizes his camera. He takes some shots of the children playing with the Toon then, deciding that it's enough, he gets out of the pipes (not without difficulties since he had to do it 'in reverse') and returns home to develop his photos and warn his 'clients' that he had their answer.

* * *

In the studio, in the room where the musicians recorded their recordings of episodes, Bendy always teaches the swing time to the children, having fun with the mistakes they make. Aiden and Keffan tend to try to synchronize their movements while Candice remembers the dances she saw in the cabaret where her mother works: _The Ink and Paint Club_!

« You're not doing too badly, Candice. » Bendy smiled.

« Mom is a singer and Betty sometimes teaches me some dances. » the girl replies with a proud smile.

« So, we'll try something else! » the little demon said, signaling Boris to change his record, which the wolf does without question. « A little dance that we usually do as a couple! And it starts ... hum ... oh yes! »

Bendy starts to snap his shoes while dancing while his wolf friend puts the record with a swing time tune.

« Don't you mind if I change my partner, Boris? »

« Go ahead ! » the wolf ghost smiles.

Bendy then takes the girl's hand and pulls her into the dance inspired by the music. Candice smiles and lets herself be guided in the waltz that the imp offers to her, even making taps. Then, catching the girl by the hip, he makes her understand that she must do like him. The human rabbit smiles and imitates the dance, going off in a sort of waltz with him. When the rhythm changes, they begin to dance rhythmically but separately then they waltz again when the starting rhythm starts again. Depending on the rhythm and under the amused gaze of their friends, Bendy and Candice go on waltz and dance solo. At the end of the music, the two dancers stop... and Aiden and Keffan applaud.

« It's sure that in duet, Miss Sautillons is talented! » the kitten smiles as the girl pulls out her tongue for the nickname. « But I'm good all by myself! I'm even sure I can do the orchestra man! »

Boris, understanding what Keffan wants, changes the disc and, hearing the first notes, the little Tunman catches drumsticks and rushes to the drums and bass drums. He starts to dance in rhythm and to play the drum at the same time, juggling between dance and pieces of drums, using both his feet and the sticks provided for this purpose. Bendy cannot help but smile when he sees the kitten having fun as much as he did when he was shooting his episodes. At the end of the music (and his little show), Tunman throws the drumsticks and joins his friends, doing a check in Aiden.

« Not too bad, Kitten! » Candice laughs, annoying the kitten who sticks out his tongue.

« I would say rather very good! » Bendy says. « Are you sure you've never danced before? »

Keffan shrugs his shoulders with a small smile. It came naturally to him, hardly the music began that he already saw the choreography that he could do.

* * *

Boris slips to Bendy and whispers something in his ear.

« Oh! Yeah ! » the devil exclaims. « One minute, I'll be back ! »

With a small smile, the little Toon walks away with the soul of the wolf under the eyes of the children. The three little ones look at each other, puzzled as the two SillyVision stars approach, Bendy holding a box and Boris holding two.

« You offer us drawings and folds at every visit and we, apart from dance lessons, haven't been offered anything to you. » the devil explains. « So, we found you that! »

Boris smiles, handing the pink-tipped box to Candice, the other to Keffan, and Bendy gives to Aiden the last. The three children look at each other, look at their friends in black and white …

« Go! Open! » Bendy smiled.

Candice (too curious) is the first to open her gift. She freezes and gives a little shout of joy by taking out two ragdolls: a representative a beautiful female angel with black hair in sexy black dress with a small white bow on the chest and a halo on the head while the other represents an adorable little female devil in white dress with short cut hair and a white band around her head.

« **THEY ARE SO PRETTY !** » the girl exclaims, hugging her new dolls in her arms.

« We didn't know which one to choose so we gave you both. » Bendy says, glad that she likes it so much.

« Do they have names? »

Bendy suddenly seems a little sad ... but keeping his smile, he nods and replies:

« Alice Angel and Pandora Devil. The fallen angel and the nice devil. »

Aiden is surprised at the underlying sadness in his friend's voice, but Candice is too happy to really consider it. Keffan decides to open his package... and smiles as he takes out a stuffed toy of Boris. The little magpie frowns, intrigued, ... then opens his package to see the stuffed Bendy that had attracted him the day he had entered the studio. Huge eyes of disbelief, the chick lifts the stuffed under the amused look of Bendy.

« I noticed that you kept an eye on it every time you passed. » the dancing demon explains.

Aiden remains forbidden ... then smiles and squeezes the plush, which squeaks slightly.

* * *

At TerryToons Studios, the three parents' couples are gathered in the director's office: SourPuss and Gandy, Heckle and Jeckle, and Roger and Jessica. The young woman is the last to arrive.

« Sorry! I was retained at the Club. » she explains as she sinks down, putting her bag on the floor.

« The most important thing is that you are all here. » Eddie said, taking out the developed photos from his pocket.

« Do you know where the children are going? » Jeckle asks, hoping.

« I was finally able to follow them. Fortunately Jessica had warned me that Candice had been baking the day before. »

« What was she planning for this time? » Roger asks, quite annoyed by his daughter's jokes.

« Sleeping pills. And since Dingbat is still sleeping, she had to put the dose on it. » the detective answers as he looks at the photos before posing the ones in the building. « This is where they go. Does anyone know this place? »

Roger retrieves one of the photos and looks at it closely with Jessica. The Rabbit couple shrugs their shoulders before passing the picture to other couples.

« No, I've never seen this studio. » Heckle answers as Jeckle shakes his head, totally lost.

« How can you be sure it's a studio? » Valiant wonders.

« It looks like the first studios. » Gandy explains, retrieving the photo. « In the 20s or 30s, studios were like that when they started. That one didn't take off. »

« But none of you know which studio it is? »

The Toons shake their heads.

Sighing, Eddie looks at the other pictures.

« I also discovered why they were going there. They didn't lie on one point: they made a friend in it. »

« A human ? » Jeckle asks.

« No, it's a Toon. » Valiant answers by selecting the best photo. « And given his graphics, it's an old Toon. In the 30s I would say. One of you knows him? »

Eddie puts the picture on the desk, forcing the parents to approach... but he just withdraws his hand that the Toons move away screaming in fear (Roger even falling from his chair), to the great shock of both humans. Jessica (usually so inexpressive) is very clearly scared, Roger trembles so much that he is unable to get up, Jeckle hugs his husband and the two magpies are white like aspirins (so much so that their plumage seems to be fired at gray) and Gandy jumped into SourPuss's arms, the cat's face being as white as a ghost and shaking all over his body. The detective turns to the studio director but Bill shrugs. He doesn't see why the Toons are so scared. Especially since he already saw the pictures when Valiant came back and he didn't see anything terrifying.

« Can one of you explain to me? » the Human is indignant.

« **I-I-It's Bendy !** » Roger fumbles, pointing at the picture.

« Who ? »

« Bendy! Bendy the dancing demon! » Gandy says.

« **Don't call him that anymore!** » SourPuss growls as he puts the goose on the ground. « He only has the title of Demon now, this kind of inked psychopath! »

Eddie and Bill look at each other, not understanding... then they turn to the Toons who start muttering visibly terrified. Seeing that the others are too scared to talk and the Humans are lost, Jessica calmly explains:

« Bendy was a Toon Devil who appeared during the year 1925 and he belonged to a small studio named SillyVision. He was very famous and the SillyVision seemed destined to become as big as WarnerBros or Disney Studios. Except that one day, without anyone realizing why, he went crazy. »

« All Toons are crazy in their genre. » Eddie says.

« We like to **play** crazy! This isn't the same ! » Heckle says indignantly. « We don't kill humans, us! »

As Eddie and Bill frown, Gandy continues:

« Bendy was in such a state of rage that he hurt many of the studio's employees. Even the director! They had to cut the ink to weaken him enough to control it and Bendy found himself locked in his studio. No one has returned since. »

Eddie nods, finally understanding where this panic fear was coming from his friends.

Suddenly, Roger asks the question that all (or almost) ask themselves in a whisper.

« How did they know about him? They are too young to have heard of him and they have never done anything serious enough to threaten to call this Demon. »

Everyone looks at each other ... when Jeckle walks away from his husband and frowns furiously. Heckle looks down at him then looks up and whistles innocently. The others start shooting the magpie and his husband growls:

« Are you sure you have nothing to do with it, Heckle? »

The magpie looks down at his companion, observes the others ... then sighs.

« Ok, ok! I told Bendy's legend to Aiden and Keffan. For Candice, I have nothing to do with it! The boys had to talk to him later. »

« That's why Keffan had nightmares for several weeks? » Gandy is indignant.

« If you didn't broods him like a baby, he wouldn't be afraid of anything like that! » the magpie defends himself.

« And if you didn't have such a big beak, your son wouldn't have brought **MY** daughter into his suicide missions! » Roger enrage.

« **She may not be all that clear either, your girl!** » Jeckle gets angry even though he knows his boy is good at driving others into his nonsense.

« **Now that's enough !** » Eddie stammers, startling the Toons who stop arguing. « I can understand that you are afraid for your children, but look at them! Do you think they look in danger? »

The Toons are turning to the photos. Indeed, their children don't seem scared. They even seem happy and play innocently as usual. But the black and white devil next to them ... he wasn't a friend! But a monster! A danger that these little innoscents hadn't seen! They had to protect them!

* * *

After several hours playing with Bendy, the kids happily leave the studios. Candice had put the dolls in her bag so that no one could see them until they joined the studios. There, the boys would put their stuffed toys in their bags before hiding them at home. They found it unfortunate that the gifts should remain hidden but as long as Bendy would be considered a monster, they couldn't show them.

« By the way, what's your plan, Aidy? » Candice asks as she enters the tunnel.

« My plan ? »

« You said you had a plan to get Bendy out of his studio. » Keffan continues.

« Ah! » the little magpie exclaims. « That's still a project! But I see too much a great opportunity to get him out without anyone calculating that he is there! »

« Now you have to explain us there! » the kitten laughed, stooping to pass between the boards.

But hardly is it on the other side that it freezes, just like Candice and Aiden when they returned in ToonTown. There, in front of them, visibly very angry, stood their parents with Mr Valiant. They all seem angry and disappointed.

« I think you owe us some explanations, young people! » Roger scolds.

The three children look at each other and swallow, lowering their head without looking at their parents.

« This time, you didn't put enough in your macaron, Candy ... » Aiden mumbles.

The rabgirl look down at him 5 seconds before reattaching her parents. This time, they were in big troubles.

* * *

Back home with Heckle and Jeckle with the children and under the eyes of Eddie (who wants the last word of this story), the parents expect explanations ... except that the children remain silent, preferring to be silent rather than betray their friend. But the Toons cannot remain unanswered.

« **Children! For the last time, explain yourself! What did it take you to go there!? Do you realize how dangerous it was?** » Heckle gets upset.

The little ones keep their eyes down but Roger notices that Candice convulsively squeezes her bag. Without waiting, the rabbit seizes the bag, frightening the children, opens it and empties the contents: papers, sweets, flowers ... and the four stuffed toys. The two dolls fall before being followed by the plush of the wolf ... then that of the little demon who squeaks while touching the ground. The six parents jump at the toy and Aiden rushes to get his present. He hugged it tightly, knowing that his parents might destroy it.

« Aiden? You can explain ? » Jeckle jabs.

The chick looks up at the parents, ashamed, turns to his friends ... and sighs.

« The new friend I told you about ... it's Bendy! »

« You can't be serious, son! » Heckle says indignantly. « This demon is a monster! »

« **BENDY IS NOT A MONSTER !** » the children scream, making the adults jump.

« **It's a Toon like all of us!** » Candice said. « Just a little lost! »

« It's thanks to him that I dance now! » Keffan adds. « He's nice, sweet and he's a great friend! »

« He is very good at dancing and singing! » Aiden concludes. « He's a complete artist! A great friend! But he was betrayed! »

« He managed to make you believe that? » Roger exclaimed. « Have you been stupid enough to believe it? Children, let's see! **It's a Demon!** »

« No ! It's a hurt Toon! » the little magpie gets upset. « He was betrayed by those he trusted most! »

« Humans often change studios, it's very common! » SourPuss sighs. « So, sure it's sad, but he must learn to build a character! »

« It's not because of Henry that he became like this! » the chick tries.

« Aiden, little man... » Gandy sighs by kneeling before the little one. « Bendy is no longer the Toon he was. He became crazy ! He never left his studio to go to ToonTown and he almost killed several people. Others have even disappeared during his attack. He is dangerous… »

« **But are you deaf or what !?** » the chick yells. « **Bendy isn't mean ! It's the Humans who hurt them! To him, to Boris, to all the Toons who worked there! The real monster isn't Bendy!** »

« **Aiden! You'll drop a tone, please!** » Heckle scolds, but his son hasn't finished.

« **You are like the others! Bendy is right! You are all manipulated by humans! But Humans are all liars! YOU HEAR ! LIARS ! TRAITORS !** »

Heckle gets up at once, and before his companion has time to understand, he gives Aiden a big slap.

« Heckle! » Jeckle is horrified.

The chick falls to the ground, his hand on his cheek, holding back sobs. Then he looks up furiously at the adults before getting up and running to his room crying, hugging his stuffed Bendy in his arms and screaming '' **ONLY LIARS! LIARS !** ''. The door of his room slams violently, making his mother sigh. Keffan and Candice watch the scene without saying anything ... then they glance at their parents and run out to go home, their present in their arms.

* * *

Heckle sighs as he passes a hand through his feathers. He turns to his companion and shrugs.

« I don't know what took from me ... »

Jeckle looks at his husband and sighs, going to hug him. They felt so helpless. Their only child had become friends with a demon! A Toon that everyone feared, knowing what he was capable of! From then on, the ink had scared the new Toons. So, knowing that their child was spending the last months alongside this crazy monster ... it was too much for them.

« What can we do? ... Bendy has completely indoctrinated the children ... » Jeckle sobs.

The other parents look at each other, worried. They hadn't thought of that yet. In his corner, Valiant listens and observes the scene, intrigued. There were disturbing elements in this case. Noticing himself mentally that he will have to do some research on this SillyVision studio, he approaches his Toons friends.

« I think the best thing to do is make them forget about Bendy. » Eddie shrugged. « They are children. They have fads but it happens quickly in general. »

« **Good idea, Eddie!** » Roger smiled, turning to his friends. « If they are busy with something else, they will forget that demon! And everything will be like before! »

« **Fantastic !** » Gandy exclaims.

« And I know exactly how busy these three! » Heckle smiled.

The parents all get together and prepare to occupy their little ones so they forget Bendy the Demon ... but they would need all ToonTown!

* * *

 **HERE IT IS! Chapter 7 is finally here! :D And we see that our adorable "little monsters" have many tips to get rid of Eddie ^^**

 **For Bendy and Candice's dance, I use the video 'Swing Time - Rogers and Astaire' on YouTube and for Keffan, I use 'Fred Astaire's Best Scene - A Damsel in Distress'**

 **Except that the friendship between Bendy and the children has just been discovered by the parents ... will it resist that? Will Bendy be alone again? Or will they be able to keep their friendship despite what others think?**

 **Discover it in the next chapter :)**

 **Ah! Notifications ***

* Dingbat: A little TerryToons character who can remind Titi by size and color but who does not speak and makes jokes to everyone he meets. Foxiso finds him very annoying ^^

 **Here it is :D and Don't forget to leave a little comment :) You encourage the author (well, that's me ^ ^) and it costs nothing :)**

 **see you next: D**


	9. Chapter 8: What a paradise in ToonTown!

**Inked in Mystery**

 **Chapter 8 : What a paradise in ToonTown!**

The next morning, Aiden gets out of bed, still holding Bendy's stuffed animal in his arms and flies out the window. He doesn't want to add anything to his parents. They don't want to listen to him, thinking that the devil had brainwashed him. So if he was talking about what Joey had done to Boris, he was sure they would take him for a liar or they'd think Bendy told him lies. They had to see it to believe it. He had to tell his friend that they had been discovered and that they would have trouble coming to see him.

* * *

But hardly is he outside that he falls on his parents.

« Where did you think you were going, little boy? » his father smiled, amused to know his son as well.

The chick tightens his stuffed toy, knowing that his parents might want to destroy it. Jeckle seems a little saddened to see almost fear in his child's eyes ... but he keeps a smile on his beak.

« Aiden, sweetheart... today, we decided to stay with you a little. Besides, we will try to spend more family time, chick. »

« No need ! » the boy replies, still furious with the slap of the day before (which always hurts him when he thinks about it). « In addition, you have episodes to turn if you don't want to disappear. »

« Don't worry about that, my boy! » Heckle smiled, despite Aiden's furious glare. « We will always continue to shoot our episodes. But today, we are enjoying our family! And you become big now. It's time for you to find your place in ToonTown. »

Aiden frowns but his mother catches him in his arms and, after placing a kiss on his cheek, he smiles:

« You will be a great actor when you grow up! »

« But you must understand how lucky you are to be a Toon and live here in ToonTown! » his father adds.

Without further explanation, the two magpies move away in ToonTown.

* * *

After a few meters, they stop in front of Gandy Goose's and SourPuss's house. Heckle goes to the door and is greeted by SourPuss. He whispers something to him and the cat responds with a big smile as he raises his thumb.

« Gandy? Keffan? It's time to go! » he calls.

The goose and the kitten Tunman come out, one with a big smile as we usually see but the other seems a little lost. He looks up at Aiden and questions him but the chick can only shrug. He doesn't understand what their parents want to do. Suddenly, they hear the voice of Roger Rabbit.

« **HEY ! Friends !** » he cries happily, followed by Jessica and Candice.

The girl holds her Alice Angel doll with one hand and her mother's hand with the other. As soon as she is close enough, the boys question her with a look... but the girl shrugs, completely lost. The three ''fathers'' mutter each other before turning to the children (Jeckle having put Aiden on the ground).

« Well ! » SourPuss smiled. « You must be wondering why all three of you have been brought together, right? »

The little ones shrug their shoulders and look at each other, expecting perhaps a collective 'shouting'... but Roger smiles, declaring as if it was the biggest news of the century:

« Today, we will make you discover **all** the wonders of ToonTown! »

« But Dad... we know all ToonTown! » Candice exclaims. « We were born there all three! »

Keffan gives him a look that says, « Don't you forget something? » forcing Aiden to giggle as the rabgirl puts her hand on her mouth to hide an embarrassed smile.

« Sorry, Kef '... »

« You ''think'' to know all ToonTown, children! » Heckle corrects. « But there are many things you don't know yet! »

« You are the next generation of Toons! » Jeckle adds. « Those who will carry our voices even if many of us disappeared! »

« You will accomplish great things! » Gandy enthuses, hugging his boy.

« But for that, you must learn where your place is in our city. **Come on! Forward!** » Roger concludes, coaching the children after him.

The three little ones look at each other, forcing their eyebrows, unable to understand what their parents want to do to them... when Aiden stops. In the distance, he sees the SillyVision tunnel, sad, barricaded by new boards. His heart sinks as he thinks of Bendy, forgotten by all and flees like the plague while he was the victim. Clutching his Bendy plush, his paws begin to direct him to the abandoned tunnel... when Jeckle takes his hand.

« Come, sweetheart. Let's go with the others. » the magpie smiled.

The chick is forced by his mother in the direction followed by others but his eyes don't let go of the tunnel before it disappears from his field of vision.

* * *

At ToonTown, they all go about their usual business, singing, dancing, working happily or playing, having fun, taking advantage of their Toons status which allowed them all these stunts that can be deadly to a Human and sometimes chaining gag on gag. Suddenly, someone whistles to draw attention to the small group that is coming. The children look at each other, intrigued, and Jeckle leads them to the colorful and happy crowd.

 _Dear children,_

 _Make way, make way!_

The Toons move away and smile at the little faces of the kids (though Aiden can see they are shaking and scared looking at his Bendy plush). Heckle strokes his boy's head to make him look up.

 _Littles ones, it's time you knew_

 _The city of ToonTown is_

 _All you need!_

Taking advantage that the parents and the Toons around them begin to behave like Toons, laughing and dancing, the three little ones try to flee... except that Jeckle notices them quickly and catches them before being joined by Roger.

* * *

Parents take their children to the neighborhood where the greatest ToonTown dancers live, such as the Fantasia Hippos or some characters from the Merrie Melodies* or Silly Symphonies*. Roger smiles watching the little ones and sings:

 _The dancers are practising_

 _They dance to an ancient song_

The Toons start dancing and singing with the parents. Aiden and his friends are trying to escape again ... but they are stopped by three of ToonTown's most famous Toons: Disney Mickey Mouse, LooneysToons Bugs Bunny and Felix the Cat.

 _Who needs a new song?_

 _This old one's all we need!_

The three Toons lead the children into the crowd, wanting to make them dance with the others, annoying the three friends.

* * *

Wishing to really bring them back the smile and the joy, Gandy leads the children to his 'mother', the goose Petunia*, and offers them to make drawings, knowing that the children adore that.

 _This tradition is our mission_

 _And dear children, there's so much to do!_

However, instead of drawing something to color like all other children Toons, Keffan, Aiden and Candice all draw a portrait of Bendy with them, dancing and singing in ToonTown. The two geese refrain from screaming and look at each other, worried. SourPuss sighs when he sees this and decides to bring the children elsewhere.

 _Making laughter and have fun_

 _That's all you need!_

The cat decides to bring them to Geppetto, the Disney woodcarver, thinking that making sculptures with the old character and his son-puppet will change the ideas of the little ones. Candice (with her usual good humor) runs with Pinocchio (whom she knows well) and starts to paint a doll with him.

 _We share everything we make!_

 _We make!_

Keffan finds himself with Jiminy Cricket perched on his shoulder and (as Aiden next to him) begins to carve a toy in the wood.

 _We joke and we make great toys!_

The kitten smiles as he paints his toy ... but the three adult Toons freeze as Aiden paints his Bendy sculpture in black and white. Pinocchio is intrigued by the sculpture while Candice and Keffan smile.

 _For the Humans who love us back!_

Aiden takes advantage of the parents talking to lead his friends out whispering: « _We should go back!_ » Except that the parents notice them and each of the children is caught by one of his parents.

 _Don't walk away!_

Deciding that it was best to separate the children to prevent one of them reminds the others the devil, each couple moves away in ToonTown with his little one.

* * *

Keffan is driven by his parents to the studios of the WarnerBros, where many of the last Tunmans hid themselves before Doom found them and exterminated them. They pose the kitten on a seat and we bring him a photo album in which the kitten discovers some pictures of the Half-Toons who preceded him.

 _Keffan, stay on the ground now!_

 _The Tunmans will need a chief_

 _And there you are!_

Kef' frowns, wondering if they're trying to caress him in the direction of the hair, and sighs as he lays back on his chair, thinking of the many dances he could do with Bendy at the SillyVision studio rather than listening these hacks made to flatter his ego.

* * *

Meanwhile, in the Disney studios (those thanks to which the Maroons Studios were still working despite the death of the director), Candice took advantage of a moment of inattention of his father to try to escape and run to the SillyVision studios.

 _There comes a day_

 _When you're gonna look around!_

However, her parents quickly noticed her absence and Roger catches up his daughter and brings her back to the studio by carrying her on the shoulder under the amused eyes of Jessica and Baby Herman.

 _And realize happiness is_

 _Where you are!_

Candice sighs, careful to keep her Alice Angel doll with her (her father had already tried to destroy her when the girl had let go). And to say that she could learn ballet or swing time with Bendy rather than stay at Disney studios to see princesses she saw as much as she wanted ...

* * *

For his part, Aiden had been brought to the Walter Lantz Productions studios* where one of the stars, the famous Woody Woodpecker, decided to come and show him all the advantages of the Toons who live in ToonTown (although the chick seems to be in deep boredom).

 _Consider the hammerspace_

The characters that accompany Woody (such as Chilly Willy, Andy Panda or Wally Walrus) catch the child and lift him to Woody.

 _The what?_

Woody takes the little one smiling, having fun to get out of his hammerspace anything and everything.

 _Oh can you believe?_

 _We use everything we want_

 _That's all we need!_

Ortensia (wife of Oswald the Lucky Rabbit) approaches the little magpie with a big smile. As a mother of 420 rabbits, she knows she would give everything to protect them. Even if her husband couldn't stand Universal anymore (because of Charles Mintz who had snatched him from Walt Disney, using him as a slave), the black cat kept good contacts there. Then, as soon as she knew that the chick would be brought there, she had gone there.

 _Even Humans can't do better!_

 _We're bringing them joy and fun!_

The cat tickles the baby bird's belly, making him laugh and let go of his stuffed Bendy. Heckle takes advantage of this to take the toy and goes away discreetly.

 _We make happiness happening,_

 _As we are their second sun!_

Aiden then notices that his stuffed Bendy has fallen and he looks for it everywhere... when he sees his father about to throw it into the fire. Distraught, the chick flies away and, from a perfectly executed move, recovers his stuffed toy. Under the stupefied gaze of others (who thought he had finally returned in the right way), he tightens his stuffed Bendy as if his life depended on it.

 _And what about Toon physique ?_

 _Our own remady !_

Aiden takes advantage that his parents and others turn their backs to flee, returning to ToonTown ... except that Oswald catches up with him and entrusts him to his parents who ran to catch him.

 _ToonTown gives us what we need!_

The two magpies smile by moves Aiden away from his goal as the chick sighs as he observes the tunnel in the distance.

 _And no one leaves..._

* * *

Several days later, sitting in front of his house, Aiden sighs as he watches his parents smile at the neighbors who all come to see him smiling, all trying to make him drop this demonic stuffed toy.

 _That's right. We stay_

 _We're safe and we're well provided_

 _And when we look to the future_

 _There you are!_

Aiden turns his back on them and sulks as he presses Bendy's stuffed toy against his heart, restraining himself from crying ... when he sees his two friends: Keffan and Candice. Hidden behind an inert shrub, they wave to him to join them. The chick takes a quick look at his parents who continue to sing with the others.

 _You'll be okay_

 _In time you'll learn just as I did_

The magpies then lower the eyes to their little before freezing when seeing that the rascals managed to get the trunk.

 _You must find happiness right where you are!_

The Toons are all looking at each other but no one can find the chick ... when Roger and Gandy come in their turn, looking for their own child. Looking at each other, they understand that the little ones found each other and spun.

* * *

Meanwhile, the three friends managed to escape ToonTown to join the SillyVision. After several days without news, Bendy had begun to worry and then was angry (thinking he had been cheated a second time). But as soon as the three small faces are back in his field of vision, he calms down and runs to hug them.

« You scared me ! I thought something bad had happened to you! » the little devil growls.

« It's a bit like that ... » Candice sighs.

« What do you mean ? » Boris exclaims, approaching.

The little ones look at each other, uncertain ... then they explain.

* * *

« We had to wait for the parents to turn their backs to run away and come here. » Aiden sighs after clearly explaining everything.

Boris sighs before turning to Bendy. The Demon, sitting on a chair, shakes as he stares at the floor. He seems disturbed. Now the Toons knew he was alive but since they are convinced that he is a monster, he is afraid. And if they decided to make it disappear? To alarm the Humans so that they come to the studio with solvent and thinners to make them disappear? Big black tears line his eyes and fall heavily to the ground.

« We just came to reassure you, Bendy ... » Candice sighs. « We didn't forget you ... »

« And we won't forget you, it's promised! We'll find a way to make them see you're like us! »

« No need ... » the Toon muttered, wiping his tears.

Straightening up, he walks up to the '' _Dancing Demon_ '' poster and thinks about what he's doing in this episode. The children are lost, but Boris understands. From birth, Bendy had been different. He was born on Halloween on a full moon night and, if it wasn't for Henry, he would never have taken his first breath. And even after, Bendy had never known how to behave as Joey wanted. He was a demon ... but his heart was gold and he behaved like an angel. He was often scolded for that, but Henry was still there to cheer him up ... until he left. From then on, Bendy had taken refuge in what he loved most in the world.

Huffing a calm air, the darling devil starts to dance. Gently, as guided by a strange and uncontrollable force, he performs the most delicate steps, gently spinning ... and as the steps, his sorrow goes away. A smile appears on his face and, in a calm and gentle voice, he sings:

 _I love dancing with elegance,_

 _Light and almost in a trance ..._

 _Because that makes me happy_

 _Ha!_

 _Being with them isn't a need!_

Candice, Keffan and Aiden look at each other before joining the Devil and trying to imitate his dance. Bendy opens an eye to see them and smiles, continuing under Boris's tender gaze.

 _If ToonTown is scared of me,_

 _After all, it's their own choice!_

 _But once you know what you like_

 _Well, there you are!_

Bendy sighs as he feels his heart lighten up, then turns to the children, falls to his knees and hugs them.

 _You are not like the others,_

 _Stubbornness and pride_

 _Mind what he says but remember_

 _You may hear a voice inside_

Aiden smiled, happy to see that Bendy was smiling again, though he could not see them as often as they wanted. Even Keffan and Candice smile, reassured. Bendy even has fun ruffling the kitten's hair.

 _And if the voice starts to whisper_

 _To follow your very own choice,_

 _Littles ones, that voice inside is who you are!_

Relieved, Aiden jumps around Bendy's neck, promising without a word that he won't forget him.

* * *

Except that when the children leave the studio, they are stunned to see a Toon in front of the tunnel, leaning against the wall, showing that he has been waiting for a while. A black and white Toon with a large tail provided and known for its bad smell (even if the latter is a gag).

« Pepé? » Aiden wonders. « What are you doing here ? »

« I could ask you the same question, petit oiseau. » The Looney skunk with his french accent as he straightened himself up (with a simple impulse on the wall) before approaching them. « What are you doing here ? It's dangerous ! »

« No more than anywhere else. » Candice replies, shrugging her shoulders.

« **Hey !** We're talking about Bendy! » the adult Toon indignantly.

« Have you ever seen him, at least? » Keffan provokes.

« Of course not, but ... »

« So how can you know him? » The chick gets upset.

Pepé is about to answer ... but he is unable to do so. He hesitates a few seconds ... then he replies:

« Bendy is a demon! Everyone says it ! »

« Maybe but everyone says that you perfume with Camembert No. 5 when in reality you smell nothing! » Aiden gets angry, seeing the opportunity to make a connection between the Looney and their new friend.

Pepé freezes, the pain evident in his eyes. Indeed, every time someone sees him, he moves away as quickly as possible, when, as soon as the episode was over, the skunk immediately got rid of that vile odor that was used as a gag to his episodes.

« Bendy is like you, Pepé! » Aiden says. « People judge him because of the ''On-dit'' but he isn't like that! »

The Looney seems upset ... but little Candice takes his hand.

« Come ! If you see him, you will understand! » she smiled as she dragged him to the studio.

Keffan and Aiden look at each other, wondering how the little demon would react, before following them.

* * *

Pepé trembles slightly when he sees the state of the abandoned studio, but the little ones hold his hand to keep him with them. Arrived in front of Henry's office, Candice opens the door and shouts:

« **BENDY ! BORIS! We have someone to introduce you!** »

The skunk is shaking, trying to stay calm, but when the devil Toon appears out of the office, he feels his heartbeat go faster. Seeing the new Toon, Bendy turns pale and hides behind the door, pale and shaking. Suddenly, to the great shock of Pepé, a wolf ghost crosses one of the walls and appears before them. Seeing the adult, he gets between Bendy and the group growling.

« **No, Boris!** » Keffan alarms, rushing towards the wolf to calm him down. « Everything is fine ! Pepé is a friend! »

« You want us suffocated or what !? » the so-called Boris suddenly annoyed. « You don't know that skunks are moving stink balls! »

Pepé feels stabbed in the heart, even if it was common as ''insults ''. Seeing his reaction (even if the Looney used to hide it), Bendy calms down and leaves the office. He approaches slowly, passing Boris and the children to get close to the skunk and watches him closely, just like the other Toon. Everyone sees the pain of the other even if it is hidden by a mask. Boris calms down when he sees the body language of the devil is serene.

« Bonjour... » Pepé muttered, trying to make contact.

« Howdy ... » Bendy answers.

In fact, they don't know how to contact because of the apriori. Seeing that no one will take the first step, Candice leaves the room with Keffan and they bring back a reel of film and a projector. Quickly installing all the material, they project on the wall the episode '' _The Dancing Demon_ ''.

As soon as the music starts, everyone turns to see the happy little Bendy dancing, first on swing time then on the classic in a tutu. Pepé observes, incredulous, as Bendy begins to smile, crying. This episode was one of his favorites because of the dance. The rhythm of the classical dance scene leads him to resume the dance. The skunk observes that surprised ... but the tears of ink, that's one thing that the Inky Toons like Bendy, Betty and all the old Toons of the time could not invent. The false tears (as in the episodes) were white to remind the clear of the real tears but their real ones were made of ink, black and thick, leaving traces on their cheeks clearer. Bendy's tears were true as was his dance. Pepé sighs, unable to believe that he was stupid enough to judge without knowing, as humans do with him.

* * *

After a little talk and the situation was explained to him (with the proof of the mutilated body of Boris), Pepé feels even worse. Looking up at the dancing devil, he sighs:

« I'm sorry ... if I had known the truth, I ... »

« It isn't your fault. » Bendy mutters. « You couldn't have known. Especially if you have never met Joey. »

The mention of the name is internally raging the devil who starts to boil, dripping his forehead. The Looney recedes, intrigued.

« Pourquoi do you dribble like this? »

Bendy wipes the ink running down his face, sighing, bringing everything back to his head.

« It's full of ink. » he explains calmly. « When I'm calm, I'm fine. I can stabilize my body. But when I have an emotion too strong, I dribble. It's as if the ink absolutely wanted to go out. Besides, my tears are much thicker than before. »

The four ToonTown Toons look at each other and sigh. In ToonTown, everyone was unaware of the truth or veiled his face by saying that Humans could not lie to them.

« How could anyone believe that a Toon has gone so crazy? » the skunk annoyed.

« Mind you, that's not the biggest problem at the moment. » Keffan sighs.

Everyone turns to him, intrigued.

« What are you talking about ? » Candice wonders.

« The parents ! » the kitten answers, drawing the annoyed sighs of his friends. « They want to shut us up in ToonTown and, even if it's been hours since we left, they are too scared to pick us up. »

« It's true ... the time we calm them, we'll have trouble coming here. » Aiden sighs, clutching his stuffed toy in his arms.

The children and Bendy sigh, disappointed and sad to have to put their friendship aside to calm the adults of ToonTown. Pepé observes that, thinks a few moments ... then smiles.

« I think I have an idea, les petits amis! » he exclaimed, drawing all eyes towards him. « Your parents want to put you in the ToonTown standards to make you forget Bendy. So why not make them believe they are successful? »

Aiden, Keffan and Candice look at each other.

« But even if we do that, they will not let us go. »

« Before yes ... but now you have an ally! » the skunk smiled. « I will help you ! Your parents think me in the camp, thinking I'm going to help them make you forget Bendy ... but once a week, I'll ask your guard and we'll all three here at SillyVision. What do you say about it ? »

The little ones look at each other then smile before shouting in chorus: « Brush, paint, eraser and pencil! If I lie, dissolve my chin! » under the laughter of adults.

* * *

Therefore, in ToonTown, each of them, the children play the ''model children Toons''. Candice makes gags with her father and dances with her mother, Keffan behaves like a little Toon kitten of his age and Aiden was once again the fledgling gambler and joker that he has always been (with the Toons as with the Humans). All are pleased to see that their Toonitudes lessons have borne fruit.

 _Look for the bare necessities_

 _Why would we want to change?_

 _We've got the happiest city!_

 _And that is really a chance !_

Pepé often hung out with the children, managing to reunite them without the parents knowing it. Otherwise, he would often go to ToonTown and play with each child around the others.

 _All ToonTown believe in us !_

 _That's right !_

 _Everyone believe !_

The skunk and children were even amusing that others don't see their little game.

 _ToonTown gives us what we need!_

 _And no one leave!_

* * *

Dancing with the first Disney princesses, Candice makes her sweet little girl Toon back to earth and 'sane' to reassure her parents (especially her father).

 _So here I'll stay!_

 _My home, my people beside me!_

 _And when I think of tomorrow_

 _There we are!_

* * *

Keffan smiles as he looks at the photos of his predecessors and (though he doesn't see how it would be possible) he promises to serve as a leader for the future Tunmans arriving at ToonTown.

 _I'll lead the way!_

 _I'll have my people to guide me!_

 _We'll build our future together_

 _Where we are!_

His two dads are also very proud of this turnaround more than welcome. That way, their son wouldn't think about Bendy anymore and finally find a place in the Toons society!

* * *

Meanwhile, Aiden is careful to hide his plush and all his drawings, making his parents believe that he has completely forgotten the dancing demon in order to get his freedom again.

 _Cause every path leads you back to_

 _Where you are!_

After several weeks of separating the children (except Pepé, who was acting the nanny of the three children), they all thought the kids could hang out together again. Today is the first 'official' day when they see each other again after weeks! The three friends take their hands and smile as they walk through the other Toons.

 _You can find happiness right_

 _Where you are!_

 _Where you are..._

All ToonTown thinks finally see the end of the ''Bendy crisis'' as some called it. But they didn't know that the kids were now and more than ever decided to get Bendy out of his studio and prove to everyone that he is not dangerous but just sad and suspicious.

* * *

Meanwhile, in the world of Humans, one night in Los Angeles, in a small apartment, a human sleeps peacefully. His short dark hair combed impeccably despite his sleepy movements and his eyeglasses are neatly folded over the edge of his bedside table. Suddenly, he starts grunting and struggling slightly. He begins to mumble: « Bendy ... Bendy ... »

* * *

In his dream, the man (then standing in a huge field of flowers, dressed and wearing his glasses) hears a Toon laugh. A laugh he knows but, in his dream, he turns his head in all directions, seeking the source of this laugh. Suddenly, he hears footsteps behind him. He turns around and sees a little black and white devil with a big smile running to hide behind a tree, laughing like a child.

« Bendy? » the human is astonished. « How is it possible ? Since then, you should have disappeared! »

He's trying to catch up with the little devil... when he hears his laughter behind him. Turning, he sees the little black and white Toon sitting in the middle of the flowers making a bouquet while whistling. Looking up at the Human, he begins to smile even more. The man looks at him, intrigued.

« How can you still be there when everyone has forgotten you? » he asks.

The man's gaze is hateful but he is especially surprised. Bendy pushes a little chuckle like a child (which seems annoying the Human) and picks a dandelion right in front of him. He raises his head towards the man with a big smile and blows on it, sending the flying seeds in the eyes of the Human under the laughs of the little darling devil.

« **Cursed miserable devil!** » the Human rage. « I should have finished what I started at the studio instead of running away with others! Do you hear me, Bendy!? » he roared, turning to the little Toon. « **I WILL RIP YOUR HEART! AS I DID WITH BORIS!** »

* * *

As mad, he throws himself on the little dancing demon, ready to strangle him with his own hands ... but when he opens his eyes, he is surprised to find himself in his room.

« A dream ? » he wonders before running his hand through his hair.

He suddenly feels something slimy on his chest. He puts his hand under his pajama shirt and take it out covered with ink. He frowns and retrieves his glasses while standing up. He goes slowly to the window and watches the city stretching before him.

« 30 years ... it will be almost 30 years since that happened. » he mumbles, observing the fresh ink on his fingers. « But there, the heart no longer beats reflex like 30 years. He beats with hope. It can only mean one thing... »

Straightening his glasses, he turns to the only picture still present on his past as an animation studio director. We see him, straight and proud, next to a dark haired man with ink on his fingers and face and with two Toons: a wolf in white overalls and a devil with a white bow tie. Clenching his fist, he seems to have absorbed the ink ... and smiles with a psychopathic air.

« Bendy is still alive ... »

Beside the photo, we can see a badge that he wore in the studio at the very beginning so that everyone knows who he was, just what becomes the name associated with SillyVision: Joey Drew!

* * *

 **Here! :D Chapter 8 was very quick to write so here it is already ^^**

 ** _Moana_ 's song "** _Where we are_ **" seemed to me ideal for this chapter and the situation then I did it. It may not be the biggest song of the movie but it's nice for this kind of situation :D**

 **Pepé has joined our friends and now helps them to see Bendy in secret. But something of the past comes back: Joey Drew! By the way, the actor I chose to represent our sick director is Mister... Johnny Depp! What will that say?**

 **I have nothing against this actor on the contrary! I love it! And I'm sure of sure he would make us a fu****** good Joey Drew!**

 **Ah! I forgot the notifications noted ***

 _* Merrie Melodies: Created by WarnerBros Studios_

 _* Silly Symphonies: Created by Disney Studios_

 _* Petunia Goose: The one we see in the episode Spring Fever, a kind of remake of Gandy the Goose where the mother seems much closer to her child. With Foxiso, we thought she could have kept this role with Gandy, especially when he wanted to adopt Keffan._

 _* Woody Woodpecker's first production studio under the direction of Universal Pictures_

 **Here it is: D And don't forget to leave a little comment to encourage me :)**

 **see you next time: D**


	10. Chapter 9: First day out failed

**Inked in Mystery**

* * *

 **Chapter 9 : First day out failed**

Several weeks passed (with Candice's birthday on the 18th) and Halloween was fast approaching. Apparently, that date had meaning for Bendy so Aiden had decided it would be the perfect moment! Finishing his plan in the greatest secrecy, he spent hours drawing and showed all his sketches to Pepé. The skunk helped him as best he could while ignoring the end of the story.

* * *

For his part, Eddie was conducting his little investigation on Bendy. The few people who worked in this studio that he was able to find seem to have been traumatized by this case but, at the same time, they couldn't blame the little devil. According to them, it was mostly a happy little guy with the soul of a child who loved everyone and everyone loved him... except the director of studios: a man named Joey Drew. From what he could understand, the Human was a perfectionist and he couldn't stand the idea that Bendy was a nice devil.

According to him, the demons were powerful beings, controlling black magic and doing Evil everywhere around them. But this little Toon was just the opposite. The daughter of one of the team members who had known the little demon had fun making the connection between Bendy and Casper the friendly little ghost of Paramount Pictures. Eddie smiled at that, thinking that indeed these two Toons could be very similar and that they could even become friends ... but for now, he had to learn about this mysterious director of the SillyVisions: Joey Drew!

* * *

The detective took the time but eventually found the address of the man in question: in a quiet suburb of Los Angeles, in a small apartment in a newly renovated building. Knowing that Mr. Drew was in his thirties when the SillyVision adventure started, it must have been a person between 55 and 60 years old. Finally finding the door of the apartment, Eddie strikes and wait. He hears movement inside ... and a young man with an unbuttoned shirt opens the door. In any case, if he's really 60, he doesn't do it that much and Valiant is surprised. He checks the address again ... but it's this apartment so he's in face-to-face with Joey Drew!

Joey frowns at the detective and straightens his glasses.

« Can I help you ? » he mumbles as he leans against the door, opening his shirt further, revealing an impressive red scar on his chest that intrigues Eddie.

« Joey Drew? » Valiant asks.

« Myself… »

« Eddie Valiant, Detective for Humans and Toons. » he introduces himself, frowning at the young man. « I have a few questions to ask you about your old studio. »

« The SillyVision? It's been 30 years since no one went there! The building must be totally deserted now. » Drew sighs, straightening up to run his hand through his hair. « And what are you interested in? »

« There were weird things in this studio ... like the madness of one of the studio's stars! Bendy the Dancing Demon! Does that remind you of something ? »

Eddie is surprised to see Joey go dark ... and the young man shows him his scar.

« Do you know how I got that, Mr. Valiant? »

« No idea. »

« It's thanks to this demon! His crisis of madness was completely under the same roof! And in panic, I took a burst of pipes in the chest. »

« It seems to have been violent. » Eddie admits, watching the mark. « But not so bad considering you're still alive. »

« Ha ... ha ... ha ... If it had been that! » the former director cringes, finally buttoning up his shirt. « Therefore, impossible to find work in the animation. No matter how passionate and motivated you may be, with a task as ingrained as the SillyVision disaster on your resume, no one takes you. »

« I spoke with some of your former collaborators and they said you didn't have very good contact with the Toons. »

« Did you see how big the studio was !? » Joey gets upset. « I had to settle the contracts with the investors! So, sure, unlike some like Henry, I didn't spend my time with the Toons! »

Eddie is a little surprised by this explosion of anger ... but an element intrigues him more.

« Henry? »

Joey seems surprised to find that the detective hasn't yet spoken to Henry.

« He was one of my closest collaborators. A talented animator and the creator of all the characters, be it Bendy, Boris, Alice Angel or Pandora. Bendy is the first Toon he saw born, even though he had already drawn Boris. » the young man explains.

Valiant nods and takes note of the various names, recognizing some that Candice, Keffan and Aiden have used.

« Do you know where Henry lives? » he asks.

« No. He had left the studio well before the disaster. He was a little too visionary and wanted to add new magical adventures to Bendy so he went around the others studios. » Drew responds with a shrug. « If he wasn't picked up in a studio, he had to try to find a house near ToonTown. He always loved hanging around with these critters so ... »

Eddie frowns further, disturbed by the term used to describe the Toons, but he recovers and thanks the former director of SillyVision moving away with in mind the intention to find the famous Henry. He doesn't notice Drew's curious look before the latter closes the door of his apartment.

* * *

Halloween arrived faster than Aiden wanted ... but he was ready! During the guard tour with Pepé, he had exposed his plan to his ''friends-accomplices'' and all had accepted hands down. Since then, covered by the Looney, they had returned to SillyVision with a little surprise for their devilish friend.

Bendy is quietly flipping through an old script while singing the songs while Boris sorts through the reels of movies. Suddenly someone knocks on the door. Intrigued (because nobody other than children and Pepé sometimes came here), the little devil goes to the entrance and opens ... to face three little monsters who shout happily '' **BOO!** ''. Jumping, the little Toon fled into the studio and jump into the arms of Boris. The little monsters then arrive, laughing and remove their masks to reveal Aiden, Keffan and Candice.

« Hi, little ones. » the wolf grinned, calming Bendy, who allowed himself to turn to them, surprised and slightly ashamed of having been so scared. « What brings you here? »

« It's Halloween today! » the human-faced rabbit happily exclaims, painted with false stitching reminiscent of a rag doll.

« And the Toons are having a great party tonight! » the Tunman adds, his facial skin has been painted white with small red streaks like drops of blood (since he is disguised as a vampire cat). « A great parade with costumes! Everyone in ToonTown will be disguised! »

« And we thought it was the perfect opportunity to get Bendy out! » Aiden concludes, his face and beak white with small devil horns on his head and a black suit to hide his legs and a white bow tie to look like Bendy.

« **WHAT!?** » the little devil jumps, falling from Boris's arms.

He lands on the ground in a loud roar, under the laughter of his friends, and rubs his head to chase the feeling of whirling while the little magpie explains:

« You've been locked here since you were born! We thought it was high time that you go out! »

Bendy stands up, visibly annoyed before taking a small forced smile.

« That's nice, kids, but there's a tiny mini maxi problem! »

« What? » the children wonder.

« Those of ToonTown **ARE AFRAID OF ME!** » he irritates himself. « So if I come to ToonTown, the others will hurry to use diluent to erase me! »

« Of course not ! » the chick laughs as he pulls a large cloak out of his hammerspace. « It's Halloween! And on Halloween, everyone is disguised to scare! Look at me ! Dad and Mom are always afraid of you but I had the right to make a costume of you! Camouflaged under this cloak, nobody will see anything! »

Bendy watches the clothes, disturbed, but shakes his head.

« No ... no no no, I can't ... »

Fear invades the head of the devil. He never went out. He doesn't know what is outside. Even if the idea of going to ToonTown pleases him greatly and he absolutely wants to go ... but fear frightens him. Boris had already seen the outside but not him. The fear of the unknown paralyzes it. The wolf smiles, amused, and lifts the devil's chin.

« Everything will be fine, Bendy. And, if you want, I'll be here. Invisible but near you. Like always. For better and for worse, I'll be with you. »

And there, to the surprise of the children, Boris lays his lips on those of Bendy who is at first surprised ... then he closes his eyes with a sigh as if he had just found something he had lost, leaving a tear poured on his cheek. After a kiss of a few seconds, the wolf spreads with a smile and the other Toon slowly opens the eyes as disturbed but at the same time happy. He smiles as he strokes his lips and gives a little laugh.

« I didn't know we could do that... » he said, blushing.

Boris shrugs ... when Candice starts screaming with joy, making them all jump.

« **AHHH ! I KNEW IT !** I knew it, I knew it! » she whines, leaping everywhere before jumping on Keffan's back, missing the kitten. « I knew they were too close to be just friends! You owe me a dollar, Keffy! »

Aiden chuckles as his friend grunts at the girl and Bendy blushes even more with a small smile.

* * *

Boris and he had been together for years. Joey had wanted Bendy to have a fiancée imp but the little devil had never liked anyone other than Boris. Their relationship had remained platonic and then, one thing at a time, they had come closer to becoming lovers. Bendy smiled, thinking back to their first kiss and the time they had to hide so Joey would not find them together ... then another memory goes to Bendy. The little Toon feels his heart tighten, the tears beaded in his eyes and his hands instinctively pose on his belly. Aiden doesn't know why he has this weird reflex, but he smiles at him, handing him the cloak.

« Come on! Put it on and let's go! You'll see, you'll have fun! »

Bendy looks at his young friend, intrigued ... but facing the four encouraging faces in front of him, he cannot refuse. Sighing, he grabs the dark blue cape and puts it on, tucking the hood before the three little boys take his hand and drag him outside.

* * *

No sooner has he passed the door than Bendy is dazzled. Distraught by this sudden light, he screams and rolls into a ball trembling.

« Bendy, it's nothing! It's just the sun. » Aiden laughed.

Trembling, the little demon straightens his head and blinks his eyes. When his vision gets used to so much light, he can finally see ... and finds himself breathless. The studio's street may not be the most joyful, but all these colors and new sensations (like the wind blowing or the earth under its feet) seem to him a delight. Although he doesn't smile because of these novelties that overwhelm him, he walks forward observing.

He gets scared walking on a rock but he calms down when he sees that it doesn't hurt him. The wind then blows in his cloak and the sensation of the fabric flying over his body makes him laugh. He even starts to dance, trying to follow the rhythm of the wind, laughing with all his lungs, marveling at how he feels ... when he hits a tree. Recovering from the shock, he is amazed to finally see a real tree and not a drawing one on a cardboard. He puts his hand on the bark and almost feels the energy of the vegetable giant with his sap running down his trunk like blood in a man's body. Bendy is subjugated.

« That's it, ToonTown? » he asks innocently, like a child.

Candice and Aiden burst out laughing as Keffan approaches the darling devil.

« No, that's the real world. The world of Humans. ToonTown is there! » he explains, pointing the tunnel.

Bendy is a little worried by the dark and uncomfortable effect of the passage ... but as Boris and the children accompany him, he lets himself be guided.

* * *

After a few minutes to cross the tunnel, the children pass between the boards followed by the soul of the wolf... but Bendy hesitates. Finally, as the sound of the wind in the tunnel is more frightening than the fear of ToonTown, he passes the boards and runs away from the tunnel. He is stopped when he stumbles on an old board and falls to the ground. He is also surprised to not have the same feeling as out of the studio. Intrigued, he stands up, puts the hood on his cloak so he can see ... and freezes.

The marvelous city of Toons, ToonTown, stands before him in all its splendor. The little Demon is amazed by all these colors brighter and more joyous than the others. He remains shocked at first ... then he begins to smile and laugh with full joy, leaving a few tears of joy running down his cheeks. Unable to stay away from his biggest dream, he starts running towards the city with a huge smile followed by the children and Boris (who becomes invisible so he won't scare the other Toons).

* * *

The whole city was decorated for the occasion and everyone was singing happily, preparing to have fun at tonight's big party, with the Halloween parade, the most terrifying costume election and many more things ! Bendy is even surprised that they are so happy that it's Halloween. Joey had always told him that his birthday was a dark day when the dead and black spirits could come back to Earth! Where black magic is the most powerful ... but like everything else, Joey had lied to him!

Smiling, he watches the streets, amazed as a child, ... when he feels the ground trembling under his feet as if something huge was happening. Intrigued, he turns his head to see a huge black and white dinosaur slowly advanced in the streets and other Toons immediately stop what they do to bow to it. Because this is Gertie the Dinosaur*! She could be considered the first of all the Toons even though she doesn't have any cartoons other than her only movie and all ToonTown respected her for being the precursor of all the Toons and being the oldest of the Grand Council (so the most important one).

When she arrives in front of the small group, the children hurry to kneel but Bendy remains standing, amazed by the size of Gertie and not understanding why all bowed before her like a queen. The dinosaur then stops and observes him, intrigued by the Toon that she has never seen and doesn't behave like the others. The two Toons look at each other, intrigued by the other, as Betty Boop walks into the street, holding a neatly folded dress. The black and white bimbo freezes as he sees that Toon wearing a cloak standing in front of Gertie and running to join him.

« Come on! » she exclaims sweetly as she puts her hand on Bendy's shoulder, which jump. « But where do you come from? You don't know that you have to be respectful towards Gertie? »

« It's nothing, Betty. » the dinosaur reassures. « You all know that I don't ask for so much. »

Laughing, amused by the look of the dancer who bows in front of her, the mastodon moves away. Bendy stays frozen watching her disappear and Betty walks away, leaving the little group alone.

« You are lucky, Bendy! » Candice exclaims. « Even Bugs and Mickey bow to Gertie! If it had been someone other than Betty, we would have had a lot of trouble. »

The little devil shrugs ... when he hears a merry:

« What's up, Doc ? »

Jumping, Bendy turns around and falls in front of Bugs Bunny. The young leader of the Looneys is disguised as a skeleton as we saw the painting on his face and wears a big black suit. He is a little surprised when he sees the imp so the children decide to intervene.

« Hi, Bugs! » Aiden screams happily.

« Wow! My Gods, help! Two Bendy in front of me! » the rabbit laughed before rubbing Bendy's head, dropping his cloak over his eyes. « Very good costumes, children! You participate in the disguise contest? »

« Yeah! » Candice exclaims. « And look at my dress! I did it alone with Dad! »

Bugs smiles and observes Bendy carefully. The little devil shivers with fear of recognition... but before he begins to dribble, the rabbit stands up.

« Great mask! We can swear it's Bendy! » the young Looney exclaims. « It is absolutely necessary that you participate! »

Before any of them can say anything, Bugs drives Bendy after him into the city. The children decided to follow them because, even if Bugs hadn't seen that it was the true Bendy, others could recognize him.

They are unaware, however, that someone stranger to ToonTown has already noticed and recognized the dancing demon: Joey Drew. The Human looks at them with a neutral air ... then he moves away in an opposite direction, smiling in a dark way.

* * *

Pepé and Penelope had decided to walk in the fields that bordered the ToonTown's buildings before going to get ready for the party and, for the moment, both of them were lying side by side admiring the set of their sun.

« It's so beautiful. » the cat purrs, curling up against his skunk lover, below his neck.

Pepé smiles at her... but his smile disappears suddenly. He sighs loudly, attracting the attention of Penelope.

« Pepé? What's wrong? » she asks, worried.

« Oh nothing, my little chérie. But I cannot help but think about how much more sunsets until we forget. » he answer.

This surprised Penelope.

« What are you talking about, Pepinou? » she protested.

« My thing is that, of all the Looneys, we are the least used. We only do one episode by year, and that worries me. » he said. « To have to lose everything, including you ... I couldn't bear to be oublié before and to be separated from you, my lovely petit chat. And if you ever had to be forgotten with me, I could never forgive myself for doing such a thing to you. »

That was what worried the skunk: to lose everything he cherished, including his great love. Having meet Bendy, who had lost everything because of a heartless Human, made him think. He knows he won't survive.

It touches the black and white pussy that makes a kiss on the cheek of her lover.

« Aww, my Pepé d'amour. Don't say that! » she says. « Let's talk about something else before it becomes depressing. It may be Halloween but it isn't worth seeing everything in black. »

« You're right, my little pretty girl. » he says, recovering himself. « And if we were talking about 'bébés'. » he said, waving his eyebrows.

Penelope chuckles while making him an eskimo kiss ... before moving away suddenly, making his lover fall flat on the ground.

« Touch ! You're on it ! » she laughs.

« Ah! Alors you want to play, little petite! » Pepé sneers at her.

The two black and white Looneys continue running on all fours (leaping like the skunk used to do in his episodes) while laughing like children. Their pursuit race slowly brings them back to ToonTown.

* * *

In Mean Street (the copy street of Disneyland Park), Disney's Forgotten Toons are quietly living their lives. In the neighborhood named Wasteland (or World of Desolation for some), they had their lives revived, led by Oswald the Lucky Rabbit. Of course, they could still wander in ToonTown but they couldn't live there anymore by being forgotten. But they didn't complain about this life.

The Gremlins fly everywhere, happily singing the song from Donald Duck's episode _Trick or Treat_ and decorating the street. But as the boastful Prescott approaches a dead end, he sees a shadow and hears grunts with a red light. Intrigued, he flies to Ortensia who smiles following the advanced decorations and watching her many children.

« Ortensia! » he calls as he approaches, drawing the attention of Oswald's wife. « There is a strange thing in the alley there. It doesn't seem natural. »

« Really ? » she worries before noticing that one of her babies rabbits is about to make a foolishness. « Hopper! Put this brush down! Halloween party hasn't started yet! »

« Do you think we should call Oswald back to see that? »

« No, I'll go see that. » the black cat in pink skirt answers before seeing another foolishness of her little ones. « Walter! Leave your sister alone or you won't have candy tonight! »

Sighing, she follows the Gremlins to the alley ... when she sees a movement at the bottom.

« Is someone there ? » she calls worriedly.

* * *

Suddenly, before Prescott or her has time to react, a large, dripping ink hand comes out of the alley and catches the feline Toon. Ortensia yells while being lift from the ground, frenzied all the inhabitants who stop decorating. The babies rabbits are so frightened by seeing the huge monster that has caught their mother that they run away screaming and run to hide at home. The Gremlins fly to help their 'queen' but the creature suddenly catches one of the youngest and, to their horror, after stuck Ortensia on his body, he plunges his hand into the chest of young Toon who screaming in pain ... before stopping when the creature pulls out his hand, holding the heart of the Toon. He collapses then, 'death', and the monster drops his body like an empty shell.

Ortensia cannot help but screaming in horror at seeing this 'child' dead on the ground. The creature then swallows the heart and grabs the cat Toon, smiling with all his crooked teeth. Suddenly, watching the beast in front of her, Ortensia recognizes a Toon she saw in old cartoons before being forgotten.

« The SillyVision's Demon? ... » she is horrifying.

The creature smiles as satisfied ... then he plunges his hand into Ortensia's chest. The cat freezes under the pain, feeling her heart being squeezed by a cold, brutal hand, and when it recedes with her heart, she collapses without life. The Gremlins then flee, panicked ... but many are then caught and emptied of their hearts. All hiding at home and barricading themselves, not wanting to be the next victims of this 'serial killer', when laughter attract the attention of the creature. Turning, he sees two black and white silhouettes approaching with a laugh and he cruelly smile.

* * *

Penelope arrives stunned in the street where the massive ink figure had taken refuge, then, turning towards the deserted street, she quickly returns to her mind and begins to worry when she sees no Toon in the street. Freezing on the spot, she intrigues Pepé who arrives behind her.

« Honey, darling? Well quel est-ce, my little darling? » he asks, arriving at his side.

« This alley is too quiet. Usually, it's all over the place, the Gremlins are flying all the time... something must have happened. » the cat worries.

Pepé starts to watch the surroundings and slowly advances in the street, prompting Penelope to stay where she is.

« Be careful, Pepé. » she says.

Pepé looks everywhere as he walks down the street. The atmosphere was too quiet for him. He swallows loudly ... when he hears a grunt.

« Hey ! Someone there ? » he calls.

He walks slowly down the alley ... when he sees a Toon on the ground. Intrigued, he runs towards him ... and freezes when he sees him lifeless. He is about to call Penelope when another grunt is heard. Raising his head, he sees an inkling creature standing before him, dripping everywhere and smiling diabolically. The skunk is horrified by the monstrosity ... when he recognizes the horns on his head, a melted white bow tie and dance shoes on twisted feet.

« Bendy? » he suffocates, unable to believe what he sees. « But what is happening to you, mon ami? » he is unworthy.

The creature starts to roar and tries to catch him... but Pepé is fast! With one bound, he escapes the creature's hand and runs away as fast as he can. The monster who look like Bendy roars while pursuing him.

* * *

Penelope jumps when she hears the animal roars coming from the alley ... when Pepé rushes out scared, pursued by a strange ink creature.

« **RUN, PENELOPE !** » the skunk shouted, joining her.

The two Looneys flee first to the fields, followed by the creature... but the big legs of this big monster allow it to go fast. Knowing that they cannot escape alone, they turn around and run to ToonTown, hoping others can help them. But on entering Mean Street, Penelope shrieks in horror. Dozens of dead bodies (mostly Gremlins) are lying on the ground. She watches, horrified, the corpses in front of her. Pepé joins her and is also frozen in horror. Bendy did that? Turning, he sees the filiform ink creature running towards them smiling. He is far too big to be Bendy... but the resemblance is striking! And he had already seen Toons doubled in size. Worried about the safety of his companion, he grabs her by the hand and pulls her to the city center. Once out of the street changed into a graveyard, he releases her hand.

« Run looked for help, mon amour! I hold him back! »

« **Pepé! No !** » the black and white cat is horrified, intrigues Speedy as he passes by.

But when the monster goes out, the mouse screams and runs to the city center, where all the Toons are.

« **PENELOPE RUN! RUN!** » he shouts, pushing her away.

The monster rushes on the cat, when he takes a violent kick by the skunk before he bites his arm violently. Penelope then runs to the city center even if her heart squeezes with terror. Pepé manages to hold the monster long enough to disappear in an other street but the demon suddenly catches him, squeezing him tightly in its large hand. The skunk struggles to break free despite the pain of the creature's grip ... when it plunges its hand into his chest. Feeling his heart to be caught in these claws increte and disgusting, he finds himself breathless and understands immediately that he was right.

« You're not Bendy ... » he says, his breath short and his face deformed by hatred.

The beast grunts ... and withdraws his hand violently.

* * *

In the center of ToonTown, the party goes on happily without suspecting what is happening in the district of Wasteland. The Toons sing and dance, having fun scavenging and swapping candies under the amused gaze of Eddie, who came every year to support his goddaughter who was still participating in the disguise contest.

Bendy observes all this happy excitement, his heart beating with joy. This city was even more magnificent than he had imagined following the descriptions of Boris and Alice. Everything seems wonderful, joy, happiness and it seems that all dreams can come true! Joey had still lied to him ... but he was finally free! Free like any Toon! He was finally entitled to his place in the sun, even if it was only for today. By the time children find out how to convince adults that he was harmless... or at least innocent of the horrors Joey accused him of.

* * *

A little further, in front of ToonTown's official ToonLogist's house, there seems to be a problem ... for the owner anyway! Because his friend, Sam the shepherd dog, seems quite enthusiastic.

« Come on, Wile! » the dog insists disguised as a sheep in front of the Looney coyote door.

« **No way ! I stay here !** » the Coyote cries from his home.

« Come on, we'll miss the party! » Sam said.

He is waiting for an answer but nothing comes from his spouse.

« Good! Ready or not, my little quail, I'll force you out! » the sheepdog smiles and enters the house.

He came back a moment later, carrying the coyote like a bride out of his lair. Wile was disguised as a Bo Beep shepherd and he glared at the other canine.

« **You'll pay it, Sam!** You said we would disguise ourselves in costumes that go together! » the Looney rages, disengaging himself from the sheepdog's arms.

« What? I don't lie. The shepherdess and the sheep, it goes together! » Sam defends himself, reaching out to the coyote who accepts it and leads the way. « Come on! We go to the party! »

Coyote cursed in silence, complaining of having a heart that was a little too tender when it came to the Sheepdog. Maybe it was because he isn't as used as he or Road Runner... he doesn't know. Arriving at the party, he drops the hat on his eyes to hide his face... when he sees a little black and white Toon dressed in a cape who smiles while observing all around him. He is a little surprised because this Toon reminds him something ... but when the little one says to him ''Pretty dress!'' with a sincere and not mocking smile, he calms down. Sam and Wile walk away in the crowd without paying more attention to Bendy who continues to look around like a child.

* * *

While everyone is laughing and having fun, music begins to play and one of Disney's ghosts walks up on a platform mounted on the biggest of all the floats of the parade, laughing and presenting:

« **Ladies and gentlemen! Toons and ghouls! Step right up! This is the moment you are all waiting for! The beginning of the night where everything is Delight! Horror! Fantasy and Terror! Your every wish is our command! Your every whimsical desire brought to life! But I'm warning you… There's always a price! Welcome to the greatest Halloween Parade! The one of ToonTown!** »

Everyone begins to scream with joy and the music starts to get more lively. The ghosts of Paramount Pictures then fly into the sky laughing, having fun scary ... except the little Casper who flies smiling before descending to the children who greet him happily.

Suddenly, all the Toon Chiefs of the different studios begin to march between the Toons singing:

 _The Dark Carnival Is In Town_

 _You Better Be Ready !_

 _Just Follow The Parade_

 _Of Dancing Skeletons_

The skeletons of an old Disney cartoon appear and start dancing by making music with their bones as in the cartoon under the song of Chiefs.

 _Full Of Ghoulish Delights_

 _Around Every Corner_

 _Don't Tell Your Parents You're Here_

 _They Will Soon Be Mourners_

The other Toons start singing while dancing and making monsters.

 _Welcome To The Lower Birth_

 _The Greatest Show Unearthed_

 _We Appear Without A Sound_

 _The Darkest Show Around_

 _We Will Leave You In A Daze_

 _Madness, Murder, Dismay_

 _We Will Disappear At Night_

 _With Blood On The Concrete_

Bendy watches all this, amazed. He can't believe they can make something as dark as Halloween, the darkest day of the year, as something cheerful, dancing and fun. Felix approaches the children and smiles at Bendy without recognizing him. The cat is disguised as Frankenstein monster and drives the little demon with him, in the dance. The kids are so busy playing with Casper that they don't see their friend go away.

 _I Will Be Your Ticket Taker_

 _Come Inside It's A Dream_

 _Enter The Fun House Of Mirrors_

 _No One Can Hear You Scream_

The cat gives him a mirror and Bendy scream at seeing his misshapen reflection, thinking he's dripping ... when he understands that the mirror is doing that. Amused by his stupid fear, he laughs heartily with the black and white Toon.

 _We Can Supply Anything_

 _That Your Heart Desires_

 _But The Consequences_

 _Will Surely Be Dire_

Aiden suddenly notices Bendy's disappearance and silently alerts his friends. Under Casper's intrigued gaze, the little group sneak into the crowd. All begin singing again while dancing happily.

 _Welcome To The Lower Birth_

 _The Greatest Show Unearthed_

 _We Appear Without A Sound_

 _The Darkest Show Around_

 _We Will Leave You In A Daze_

 _Madness, Murder, Dismay_

 _We Will Disappear At Night_

 _With Blood On The Concrete_

Suddenly, the three little ones arrive next to three Toons of their age: Huey, Dewey and Louis. The three Disney ducklings are disguised as in the episode _Trick or Treat_ and dance happily.

 _Come Inside_

 _For The Ride_

 _Your Deepest Darkest Fears_

While Huey and Dewey begin to dance together, Louis notices the little Candice and leads her in a dance despite the protests of the girl under the laughter of her brothers.

 _The Best Night_

 _Of Your Life_

 _You're Never Leaving Here_

Keffan and Aiden continue to look for their friend ... when the kitten is caught by Betty, disguised as a beautiful Snow White, and the young black-and-white bimbo laughs while making the Tunman kid dance in the air.

 _The Unknown_

 _The Unseen_

 _Is What You're Gonna Find_

Aiden, then, falls on his parents (disguised as devils for stuck in the costume of their boy) and Jeckle catches his son to make him dance happily.

 _Witness This_

 _Witness That_

 _Until You Lose Your Mind_

The three children look around for their friend when they see Boris looking for him in the merry crowd.

* * *

While everyone is having fun, Speedy arrives totally panicked.

« **Amigos! Amigos! There is a problem !** » he yells...

But nobody hears him in the hubbub of the party. He decides to try to run to join Bugs on the platform of the largest tank of the Parade (where all the Chiefs dominate the party) so that he can warn him and thus warn everyone. The crowd hinders him but his speed is an advantage to avoid being crushed by the happy dancers.

* * *

On the stage, the Chiefs continue to dance happily, joined by Felix after the cat has had a small crowd with Bendy spinning. The little devil had been trained in many dances, he had almost lost his cloak because of Sam the Pirate (disguised as Rackham the Red) who walked on it. Luckily, Boris had handed him the garment before anyone noticed him.

 _Welcome To The Lower Birth_

 _The Greatest Show Unearthed_

 _We Appear Without A Sound_

 _The Darkest Show Around_

Mickey (disguised as Dracula) and Oswald (dressed as Van Helsing to tease his brother) then notice Bendy and, finding his ''disguise'' great, they drag him with them, high, so that everyone can see him. The devil is careful not to drop his cloak but he is carried away by the rhythm of the music. The children suddenly notice... but as he seems to be having fun, they are reassured. At least he still has his cloak.

 _We Will Leave You In A Daze_

 _Madness, Murder, Dismay_

 _We Will Disappear At Night_

 _With Blood On The Concrete !_

All dance, making a teeming crowd, ''scary'' but happy. When the music stops, they applaud with Bendy who can't help but laugh. And he who saw Halloween as a horror and who feared that all would chase him, he found himself surrounded by all the Toons and sang and danced with them. And to say that his fear of the world had almost made him miss this.

* * *

Suddenly, as the children get ready to go get their friend to avoid the worst, in all this merry hubbub, someone starts screaming:

« **HELP ! HELP ! THERE IS A DEMON IN TOONTOWN !** »

All turn to see Penelope undisguised and visibly horrified. The Toons move aside to let her pass and she goes up on the platform.

« What's wrong, Penelope? » Mickey worries as she joins her.

« **It's terrible!** » she screams panicked. « **In Wasteland! There is a horrible monster lurking! He attacked many Gremlins! He ripped their hearts!** »

All suffocate with horror, unable to believe that anyone could do that (except those who knew the truth about Boris) but the most panicked is Oswald because it is his ''kingdom''.

« **And Ortensia? You saw her ?** » he spins as he runs to join the black and white cat of the Looneys.

« No, we just went to run away! Pepé is still there, fighting! »

The Looneys are all looking at each other, worried that one of them is facing such a monster.

As everything is calm, Speedy finally arrives on the platform. But with the speed he has taken, he can't stop in time and takes the cape of Bendy in the face. Under the sudden pull, the garment is carried away and, at this moment, Aiden regrets that Bendy has no neck. The knot of the stuff goes under Bendy's head without strangling him, the hood falls off and the whole cloak follows, falling slightly to Speedy, completely entangled in the fabric.

* * *

All of them start screaming in terror and horror at seeing the most feared Toon in the city standing in front of them. Bendy freezes when he notices too late that he is unmasked. He sees worried faces clinking with horror and fright ... but the worst comes from Penelope when she sees him who starts to dribble under fear.

« **IT'S HIM ! THIS IS THE DEMON THAT HAD TAKEN THE GREMLINS HEARTS!** »

« **NO !** » Aiden screams, panicked.

« **No it can't be him!** » Keffan defends.

But the Toons don't hear their cries, too furious to see Bendy. What did this demon want? Why was he attacking Toons? Why did he tear away their hearts? The hateful howls scare Bendy even more, who dribbles more and more and goes back until he fall down to the platform, touching the ground in a sound splatch. Distraught, he gets up and runs away as fast as possible in the city.

« **He's trying to run away!** » Donald shouted.

« **Let's catch him fast! Before he kills someone else!** » Sam cries, pulling out his guns.

Without thinking, he begins to shoot the imp but Bendy avoids each shot with his agility dancer. When he disappears at the bend of a street, all start pursuing him screaming with rage, recovering all that could be used to fight him. At this point, Eddie is stunned to see all the Toons embark on a sort of witch hunt instead of happily celebrating Halloween. Candice then rushes to him, tears in her eyes.

« **Uncle Eddie! He is for nothing in this! We must help him!** » the little girl begs.

« What? Your father told me you didn't talk about Bendy anymore. » the human is astonished.

« **YOU UNDERSTAND NOTHING ! YOU ARE LIKE OTHERS !** »

Furious, the girl moves away crying and rejoins her friends. The three children then join Boris and all go after the Toons to help their friend.

* * *

Bendy runs, distraught hearing the howls of hatred behind him. Everything started well then everything went wrong! Why did that female Toon accuse him while he was partying with the others? Suddenly, something falls inert before him, stopping him in his flight. To his horror, he recognizes the corpse of Pepé LePew! Before he has time to react, the others arrive and the Looneys are horrified to see their friend's body. Penelope then starts crying and yells the name of her companion running towards him to hug him. Bendy walks away as quickly as possible before the male Toons rush after him, leaving the poor Toon in tears with other female Toons. The kids who come after are horrified by what they see but they know that Bendy can't do that. He had to be helped before others hurt him.

The little devil feels his legs about to drop and the ink cascades from his body, leaving big black imprints that guide his pursuers. But as he looks back, he doesn't notice Speedy and his friends Pedro and Fernando pulling a rope in his path. The little Toon stumbles and falls heavily while projecting his overflow of ink. Distraught, he looks up and turns ... to see that all the Toons have surrounded him. They are all furious.

« **WHY DO YOU DO IT, DIRTY MONSTER !?** » Roger gets upset.

« **What are you doing here, Demon?** » the Weasel Smart Guy (who were resurrected by their studio) rage.

« **You all want to kill us, is that it? Don't count on us to let us do it!** » Daffy shouted with Donald, who started shouting insults as he jumped up and down excitedly.

All rage and ask for an explanation or immediate revenge, scared Bendy who gets up and sticks to the wall behind him, shaking. The children arrive behind the crowd and scream:

« **STOP! You make him afraid! HE IS NOT BAD!** »

Bendy trembles when he sees those formerly smiling, now hateful faces all screaming at once. He feels the same fear as when he discovered what Joey was doing. His breath accelerates with his heartbeat, the hateful screams seem to him to be daggers close to him skewer the heart, the ink of his body drips cascading on the ground and he feels the same energy as this fateful day where he was became Bendy the Cursed Demon of SillyVision. Clenching his teeth, he closes his ears to silence them ... but the pain and the sadness seem to him too heavy. Too shaken, he begins to scream with all his might, hoping to silence them, no more hear them. And there, to the horror and amazement of all, a pentagram begins to appear on the ground, shining with a thousand lights as if the fires of Hell were coming out of the ground to draw it.

Seeing what he does, Bendy panics. That's how he unleashed the full power of the ink machine and caused the catastrophe that scared all the Toons. Distraught, he runs straight ahead of him without thinking of the Toons who block him. All move aside, worried by what this Demon could do to them in this state ... when Candice and Keffan run to take his hands.

« **CHILDREN! GET AWAY QUICKLY!** » Roger shouted, panicked for his daughter.

Candice doesn't listen to him any more, just like Keffan and the two children take Bendy after them. SourPuss tries to run to join his adopted son when Boris reappears, furious, and growls by damming him. As soon as the children and Bendy are far away, he disappears, quickly returning to the tunnel to calm his little devil. Aiden stayed behind and when the Toons try to chase down his friends, the magpie chick drops various items to slow them down while following Bendy's progress. As soon as the tunnel is seen, the little magpie is stunned to see all the planks torn off. Regardless of this detail, the small group runs towards the passage. Aiden is about to join them... when he is caught by his father.

* * *

All the Toons arrive at the Kansas City Tunnel to see the gaping opening and the dripping devil throwing themselves on the ghostly wolf's neck. To their horror, Candice and Keffan follow the two demonic beings.

« **CANDICE !** » the father of the little one screams.

But, without looking at her father, the girl disappears with Keffan and Bendy. Gandy in vain call his son, this one doesn't even look back. The only one of the group to be still in ToonTown, it is the first to have become friend with the demon: Aiden! Jeckle runs to hug his boy but the little one is struggling.

« **You are manipulated! Bendy isn't mean! You just scared him! He can't tear someone's heart off!** » he screams, struggling under the dumbfounded gaze of the adults.

They thought they had finally removed this fad to the little ones to discover that they had never stop fraternizing with the monster but that, in addition, this demon had really brainwashed them. Only Eddie wonders, puzzled that the three kids are saying exactly the same thing as the old SillyVision members.

« What are we doing ? » Minnie worries, unable to believe that this monster was so close to them.

« It's too late for the two little ones. » Droopy said softly, frightening Roger and worrying Jessica. « Bendy has probably corrupted them for a long time. »

« **But he can come back now!** » Chilly Willy panicked. « What are we doing to stop him from attacking us !? »

« Let's close the tunnel! » Sylvestre the Looney cat gets upset. « We did it thirty years ago so let's do it again! »

« It won't be enough this time! » a voice exclaims.

Everyone turns around and Aiden is horrified at the recognition, thanks to the photos he has seen in the offices. It's Joey Drew! The former director of SillyVision! The murderer of Boris and executioner of Bendy! The human had shown a lot in ToonTown in order to bond with the Toons and he had won the trust of many. The former director approaches in a fairly lively manner for his age and perches on a bench.

« Bendy has been a monster for a long time! The studio doors and barricades have only slowed down the inevitable! If he has managed to go out now, he will start again! He will rewind your children, invade ToonTown and destroy everything that brings happiness! »

The Toons scream, horrified at the thought of losing everything because of someone who was one of them. Aiden is outraged that this man dares to say that Bendy is a monster while the real monster, it was him! But Joey is very convincing and why would he lie? The Toons don't see any reason for a human to lie to them.

« There is no other way to stop this demon! » the human said, smiling. « **YOU MUST KILL BENDY!** »

« **NO !** » Aiden is horrified as the other Toons scream, raising their fists.

* * *

All agree with the human. Bendy had gone too far! He had indoctrinated three children and already attacked a dozen Toons (many are forgotten by Disney). He had committed the same horror as the Toon that was the judge Doom! He deserved the same fate! SourPuss turns to the others, furious, and he is the first to react.

 _We're not safe until he's dead!_

Tom the Cat nods and his mouse friend Jerry, perched on his head, adds:

 _He'll come stalking us at night_

Baby Herman approaches them, a cigar in his hand and a determined look on his baby face.

 _Set to sacrifice our children to his monstrous appetite!_

Penelope Pussycat advances in her turn, furious. She lost her companion because of this monster and she was demanding revenge for her dear Pepé!

 _He'll wreak havoc on our village if we let him wander free!_

Joey smiles, proud of his small effect, and stands higher on his bench and continues his false propaganda.

 _So it's time to take some action, boys!_

 _It's time to follow me!_

All the Toons nod their heads and all start screaming, being fooled by the words of the Human.

 _Through the mist, through the woods_

 _Through the darkness and the shadows_

 _It's a nightmare, but it's one exciting ride_

Joey jumps from his bench and walks between the Toons with a serious look, as if it was his own life that was at stake.

 _Say a prayer, then we're there_

 _At the drawbridge of a studio_

 _And there's something truly terrible inside_

He then take a terrified look as he turns to the Toons, pretending to imitate Bendy as he shows them his own face ... but they trust the Humans so much that they don't see him.

 _It's a beast he's got fangs, razor sharp ones_

 _Massive paws, killer claws for the feast_

The children scream and hide in the female skirts (or like Pinocchio, in his dad's legs). Bambi and his friends will even run to hug Snow White and Dumbo is hiding under his big ears. Males are more motivated than ever to solve the problem with Joey.

 _Hear him roar, see him foam_

 _But we're not coming home 'til he's dead_

 _Good and dead_

« _**Kill Bendy!**_ » the Toons scream, raising their fists.

Aiden is paralyzed, unable to believe that the happy Toons he has ever known can be so violent. Taking advantage of the fact that everyone is turning to Joey and his parents let him go, he slips away and runs towards the tunnel, determined to arrive before them.

* * *

All rush to their homes to collect containers from the Humans world and fill them with solvents, diluents and even leftover dips that have been sealed after the demise of Judge Doom. The strongest Toons take the large water guns full of solvent and all arm themselves to face their enemy.

 _Light your torch, mount your horse!_

Joey restrains himself from laughing badly even if the envy tears him. Beside him, Eddie frowns, intrigued ... but the former director of SillyVision is determined to lead the Toons to the Inkon Demon.

 _Screw your courage to the sticking place!_

Once armed, everyone rushes in front of Joey, ready to fight.

 _We're counting on Joey to lead the way!_

The Human smiles and walks towards the tunnel that leads to Kansas City.

 _Call it war, call it threat_

 _You can bet they all will follow_

 _For in times like this, they'll do just as I say!_

Jeckle and Heckle look at each other, worried. Unlike the others, they weren't reassured by this man. Gandy approaches them, worried too especially because of Keffan. Shaking his head, he whispers to his friends:

 _There's a beast running wild, there's no question_

 _But I fear the wrong monster's released…._

The two Talking Magpies look at each other and look at their friend, worried ... when they notice that their chick has disappeared. And anyway, the other furious and armed Toons are already heading in the wake of Joey, creating a furious crowd.

 _Sally forth! tally ho!_

 _Grab your sword, grab your bow_

 _Praise the Lord and here we go!_

* * *

Aiden flies as fast as he can to the studio and opens the door he slams behind him before running into the studio looking for his friends. In the room where Boris's body is, Bendy is in tears, tight on the body of his friend and lover while the soul sighs. Candice jumps as she hears the door slammed, but she is more sorry for the tearful demon.

« Sorry Bendy ... » she sighs. « I don't understand that my daddy can be so mean. »

« And I am sorry too. » Keffan adds. « I didn't think Papa Chat could react like that. »

Boris sighs while stroking the head of his dear demon, but Bendy doesn't answer to the children any more than to his lover ... suddenly, Aiden arrives, panicked!

« **BENDY! You have to leave now! They will be here soon!** »

All turn to him, surprised. Bendy wipes her tears, intrigued, but it's Boris who questions the fledgling.

« What are you talking about ? »

« The other Toons! All ToonTown! They will be here soon! » the little magpie panic. « They are guided by Joey! **THEY WANT KILLED BENDY !** »

All are horrified and turn to Bendy. The demon is frozen in place, black tears running down his cheeks. Joey had just convinced all the Toons that he was a monster when it was this Human who was the real monster.

« You have to hide and fast! If they find you, they will immerse you in the Dip! »

Candice suffocates and Keffan refrains from screaming, knowing very well what the Dip is. Had the Toons all lost their mind?

* * *

Joey smiles coming out of the tunnel to see the dilapidated studio in front of him. Bendy was there, behind, at hand. He would finally reach his goal. The Toons hold their weapons and raise their fists. Roger is leading with Mickey, Bugs and SourPuss and he seems the most determined. His little Candice was in the clutches of this Demon and he would deliver her at any cost.

 _Hearts ablaze, banners high_

 _We go marching into battle_

 _Unafraid although the danger's just increased!_

He doesn't know she's hearing them as she and her friends drag Bendy with them out of the studio. She is afraid of what could have happened if Bendy was discovered. The Looneys bring a large ram (a Toon ram determined to honor his name) and advance under the songs of other Toons.

 _Raise the flag, sing the song_

 _Here we come, we're fifty strong_

 _And fifty Toons Mens can't be wrong!_

With a certain air, the Looneys rush to the door with the ram and hit his head on the door. The proud animal Toon stands straight and takes the shot without flinching. The door resists but it is so damaged that it won't last long. The Looneys recoil and start again under the encouragement of the other Toons.

 _Let's kill Bendy!_

 _Kill Bendy!_

 _Kill Bendy!_

The door finally gives way and those who hold the ram fall heavily on the floor of the entrance. Toons armed with cannons filled with diluent rush inside and search the first pieces ... but, apart from dust and cobwebs, they find nothing! If Bendy was here, he's gone now!

* * *

 **VOILA: D Chapter 9 posted! It's the longest of all I wrote :) Bendy is enjoying the Halloween party to go out ... but not everything is going as planned.**

 **the Halloween party song is** _Creature Feature - The Greatest Show Unearthed_ **, a song maybe not as innocent as that, but it's in the style I wanted: festive while sticking to Halloween spirit.**

 **The song** _"Kill Bendy"_ **... I don't think I have to tell you! Everyone had to recognize _Beauty and the Beast_. This is the 2017 version of the song, in the live movie.**

 **Ah! before I forget, the notifications noted *:**

* Character of the eponymous film of the 1914's. Officially, she isn't a Toon but it is the first animated creature to appear in the cinema and, since she interacts with a real Human, we think she can have her place in ToonTown.

 **That's it :) Don't forget to leave a comment / review! it doesn't cost anything and it makes me very happy to have the opinion of readers :)**


	11. Chapter 10: Hidden and Homecoming

**Inked in Mystery**

* * *

 **Listen to the** **song** _Draw me closer_ **at the same time as reading the scene, I think it's very nice to have this music at the same time, it will give the nice scene :D**

 **For the reaction scenes, I use the Gamer Reaction so choose the cry that seems the closest to the scared character (perso, some are totally dead laugh XD)**

* * *

 **Chapter 10 : Hidden and Homecoming**

The Toons continue to search the building... without seeing the door in the recess that served as Henry's desk. This one is very slightly open and two pairs of small eyes observe their exploration: Candice and Keffan. Aiden rises from the basement without noise (flying) and lands on the head of the Tunman.

« So ? » he whispers, glancing.

« They didn't see us. Fortunately, you arrived long before them. » the half-Toon sighs.

« Yes, but they block the exits by searching like that. It would take a diversion to be able to escape from behind with Bendy. »

Candice turns to the boys with a sigh. We should scare adults, like that they would think more about saving their skin than to find their demon friend who is in the basement with Boris (the soul as the body) until the little ones tell him that the way is clear. Except that in the real world, Candice cannot do anything. She was a Toon! She can only control Toons materials. Suddenly she freezes, turning to the kitten next to her.

« Hey ! » she exclaims in a low voice, drawing the attention of the boys. « You're a half-Toon so you can control all the materials! Well ... I mean the Toons materials as Real materials, right? »

Keffan nods, a little lost (especially since he rarely used this ability), when the rabgirl is leaning towards him with a big smile.

« Awesome ! So, here is the plan! »

The two boys bend over and listen attentively to their friend's plan.

* * *

SourPuss advance with Disney's Donald and Looneys Bugs. As the duck trembles while holding his bucket of solvent, he jostles the rabbit ahead, a shotgun (whose balls are filled with thinners) by hand.

« Hey ! Watch out with your bucket, Doc! You nearly knocked him over me! » the Looneys' Chief exclaims, avoiding a small drop.

« Sorry ... » the duck mumbles.

Suddenly, a door next to them opens without warning, making them jump. Bugs come in softly (thanking his natural optimist who keeps him from being too scared) and smiles.

« **Hey ! Guys !** I found an old office! And there's still the radio! »

Smiling, the rabbit lights the radio that sizzles a little after all these years when it didn't work ... then a 1930s air escapes from the speakers. The Looney begins to hum on the beat, looking in the office, letting the others continue.

« Watch out, Rabbit! » Sam the Pirate said passing by quickly.

« Yes, don't worry Doc! »

But as all the Toons leave to explore the rest of the building, a big ink stain comes out of the ink machine room (without being notice by those who's searching) and heads to the office whereis the long ears Looneys chief. He hums quietly on the beat... when the radio sizzles as if someone turns it off.

« What? It would already give up? »

Bugs takes the radio and observes it... when he feels something cold grab his arm. Jumping forward, he drops the radio and looks at his arm... to see a kind of inked hand grab his arm. Feeling his heart miss a beat, the rabbit scream and struggles to break free from this bizarre thing ... when it lets go of him, making him lose his balance. Carried away in his tracks, Bugs bangs violently in the Toons who ran to help him.

« What's happening ? » Mickey panicked as he joined them, followed by his brother Oswald.

« There's an ink hand that tried to catch me! » the rabbit explains.

« No, but are you serious, Bugs? » Daffy growls, stuck under his ''colleague''. « You think that's the time for your jokes? »

« **Hey !** I may be a Looney but I can tell the difference between joke time and serious moments like now! » the rabbit indignantly straightening himself.

* * *

Candice grumbles a little but not loud enough for adults to hear. What Keffan does, it wouldn't be enough to scare a bunch of raging Toons, ready to do anything to eliminate the one that makes them so scared! Especially her father who, although he was easily impressionable, would do anything to protect her. So while whispering, she growls:

« Deepen the terror aspect, Keffan! »

« Yeah, but they are our friends anyway! » the Tunman is indignant.

« Friends who are about to kill another I'm reminded you! » the lapmaine insists.

« Okay…. » Keffan sighs, raising his arms in the air (although he doesn't really need to do it since everything is done by psychokinesis) « Attention! It's going to be epic! »

While the Toons growl at Bugs Bunny, the floorboards start to snap one by one violently (waving some Toons in their passages), scary all those present at this moment.

« Oh yeah ! There it is better, Keffy! »

The kitten turns to her, a satisfied little smile,... when Aiden smiles.

« Hey ! And if Bendy popped up in front of them? »

As his friends seem lost, the chick whispers his idea.

« Oh yeah ! There is everywhere in the studio! » Keffan smiled.

« Put one in the turn of the generator's hallway, at the junction! » the magpie chick chuckle.

The kitten closes his eyes, making a plan of the studio in his head... and smiles while preparing the appearance of the demon.

* * *

The Toons in the Ink Machine corridor are shaking, not daring to move for fear of doing what has just happened... when they hear Porky screaming! Worried for the Great Council member, all rush to the scream to find the pig paralyzed in front of a cutout representing Bendy.

« That's what scares you, Porky? » Penelope wonders.

« He appeared sud-sud-sud... all at once! I don't understand how h-h-he appears there! » the Looney stammers, taking back his weapon (a simple stick).

« There's really a weird thing here. » Goofy mumbles, pushing the cutout that falls flat on the floor.

The Toons separate again to search the studio. Rock Bottom* then goes to the projection room with Mighty Mouse, Droopy and Marvin the Martian. The alien Looney stops by noticing the audio log so he try to catch it, intriguing Mighty who stays with him and Droopy decides to try to open one of the doors, limping from one to the other. Rocky continues alone and turns, heading to the projection room... when everyone in the building hears a very high scream. Jumping, the three who accompanied him rush into the corridor where Rock Bottom was to see him on the ground, shaking and pale as a towel.

« By the rings of Saturn! » Marvin is indignant. « What's the matter ? Who scream? »

Rock (still shaking) is pointing down the hall.

« B-B-Bendy! He was there ! »

Mighty flies in the direction indicated and turns in the corridor while other Toons approach ... to return with one of the many panels representing the demon. All allow themselves to breathe, relieved that the real monster isn't there preparing an ambush.

« He must have been moved by something. The wind, a mouse or something else. That's why you thought he was alive, Rocky. » the superhero mouse smiled.

« So you're the one to scream like a girl? » Droopy asks calmly.

The bulldog begins to growl while blushing as everyone burst out laughing ... when the lights go out, turn on again, creating disturbing flashes, and the ink starts flowing in the pipes that run along the walls, making them squeak in a disturbing sound. It was almost as if the building was coming back to life.

* * *

Other screams echo, making all Toons jump. This time, it's Gandy, Heckle and Jeckle! The three TerryToons run out of one of the corridors, followed by one of the signs. All are frozen, intrigued... when all the cutouts representing Bendy begin to move as if they are alive. All scream as they move away as much as possible from the cutouts... as the pipes explode one after the other and ink begins to flood the floor and dribble from the ceiling at the doors, forcing the Toons to run away from the doors.

All are trying to reach the exit... when the cutouts start encircling them. All are shaking, feeling that Bendy is hiding among the many cutouts, ... when the lights come on suddenly and a single 'BOO' sounds in the heavy silence that has settled in the studio. All the Toons scream in horror and, hustling the simple cutouts, they all rush to the exit, leaving some of their weapons on the ground. Joey, who was calmly waiting outside, freezes when he sees them come out absolutely terrified.

« **HEY ! CAME BACK HERE! We must put an end to the existence of Bendy!** »

But the terrorized Toons, rush into the tunnel to ToonTown and go home, promising to condemn forever this cursed tunnel! However, without the Toons paying attention, and as Joey pests in front of the studio, a real van passes into the deserted street and enters the passageway to Kansas City.

* * *

In SillyVision's studio, Bendy trembles as he hears the footsteps on the floor above their heads and hugs Boris (Boris's soul), praying that the Toons don't think about looking in the basement. After several minutes, they hear frantic steps above them, forcing them to prepare for the worst, ... when both SillyVision's characters hear laughter from children. Candice, Keffan and Aiden are laughing loudly as they get down the stairs. The two ''half-humans'' are literally folded in half and the little magpie is even unable to fly as he laughs and falls to the ground while holding his belly.

« What's the matter ? » Bendy wonders, straightening up, followed by Boris.

« Keffan just saw what he looks like when he's scared! » the little Rabbit chuckles before taking a gentle pat on the shoulder by the kitten.

« What? »

« Kef' used his half-Toon abilities to make it sound like the studio was haunted! » the chick laughs. « You would have seen them running like rabbits screaming! »

Candice (upset that her father is a rabbit) gives him a slap in the back of the head, stopping the laughter of the chick even if his smile stays on his beak. Bendy looks at them, intrigued, while Boris smiles.

« Well done, little ones. Now we can go out. » he said before pointing to the back of the room. « That way, we arrive at an emergency exit that leads out behind the studio. Near the employee parking. Joey used it all the time when he was covered in ink after his tests on the Toons so no one could see him. »

* * *

Aiden rushes to Bendy and takes his hand to calm him down. Boris catches the bag where his body is and guides everyone to the exit. The children are surprised to discover the music department of the studio in the basement.

« Wow, so great! » Candice exclaims. « Why did you never bring us here? » she asks, hopping.

« If you had known the director of the music department, you wouldn't ask yourself the question. » Boris responds calmly even though he sees that Bendy is uncomfortable.

They continue their way quietly to the door... except that once they are there, the passage is filled with ink. Both SillyVision are turning to children who bite their lips.

« Sorry ... » Keffan mumbles nervously playing with his tail. « I had to scare them so I turned the machine on again. Besides, what is this system of starting? When do we have to put objects on pedestals to start a machine? »

« Joey Drew system. » Bendy sighs as he approaches the ink.

Delicately, he touches the thick black liquid and it is traveled by shivers. Then to the shock of others (even Boris), the ink departs like the waters of the Red Sea. Standing up, he takes Aiden in his arms and says:

« Quick ! I don't know how long I can do that! »

Boris catches Keffan while Candice jumps on his back and both SillyVision run to the door that Bendy opens without problem. As soon as they close the door, the ink returns to its place as if nothing had happened.

* * *

They find themselves in a sort of tunnelled tunnel with old lamps still in working order by some miracle and, in the distance, they see the light from the outside, pale because of the light from the moon. The darling devil shakes, remembering his first outdoor experience after Halloween, but Candice runs to hug him.

« All is well, Bendy! We'll get you out of there. We will find a way to help you! » she smiled, wanting to bring back the smile to her new friend.

Framed by the children and the one he loves, Bendy moves slowly. The car park is deserted, overgrown with tall grass swaying in the wind and the pale moonlight... except for the van parked outside and Eddie Valiant leaning against the hood. The three children are stunned to see him there, Bendy starts to tremble (fearing that this is a new ally of Joey) and Boris growls, releasing his bag to stand in front of others. Eddie finally notices them and stands up before advancing towards them (keeping despite all a safety distance because of the wolf).

« Uncle Eddie ... » Candice mumbles.

« You were in a hell of a lot of trouble, kids. » the detective sighs. « Is it worth it at least? »

The children don't respond, hugging Bendy as if to protect him. The human observes it, neutral, ... then he smiles, even giving a little laugh.

« If you could see your heads. » he laughs, shaking his head. « If I wanted to hurt your friend, it will be a long time since I came here to settle him. »

The surprised Toons look at him as he heads for the van. He opens the back and a little white being flying out. The children recognize him and are pleasantly surprised to see him.

« Casper? »

The little ghost smiles and greets them with a hand gesture. Unlike the other Toons, he hadn't seen a monster at Bendy but a scared and sad being... like him every time he tried to make friends. He is quickly followed by two Toons souls: Pepé and Ortensia! The children smile, happy to see that they aren't dead. Only unable to find their bodies without their hearts, like Boris.

« We'll help you, mes amis! » the skunk smiled as Oswald's wife nodded, smiling.

Bendy observes them, incredulous ... and jumps up suddenly meeting face-to-face with the ghost-child. He recedes a little, embarrassed, and smiles shyly as the little boy he is.

« Sorry ... I didn't want to scare you. I know what it's like to be badly judged. I am too kind for a ghost and I hate to scare but I unintentionally scare everyone I meet. And it's so sad to be without friends so I'd like to offer you my friendship. I love making friends! By the way, my name is Casper. » the friendly little white Toon presents himself as he reaches out to Bendy as his polite little boy's education has taught him.

The Dancing Demon hesitates ... then squeezes the little white and transparent hand, murmuring:

« Bendy ... »

« Come quickly ! Get in! » Eddie orders in a firm but calm voice.

Smiling, Candice runs to the Human and jumps on his neck.

« **THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU, UNCLE EDDIE !** » she chirps.

The detective rolls his eyes, patting the little girl's head as Keffan laughs and Pepé smiles as he picks up the bag containing Boris's body.

« Quick ! Someone could come back! » Ortensia is alarmed.

Aiden takes Bendy's other hand and he and Casper pull him into the van, followed by Boris and Pepé. As they have no more room on the back seat, Candice and Keffan jump on the front seat, next to Eddie after the Human has closed the doors. Valiant starts the vehicle and returns to the tunnel... but as they approach, he notices a figure that seems to wander like a hunter in search of prey.

« Shit ! Joey! » the detective cursed, slowing down. « Hide, children! »

Keffan slips under the chair and Candice into the glove box. Aiden and Casper huddle in the back of the truck with the souls and the trembling demon.

* * *

Joey sees the vehicle approaching and moving towards the van, hands in his pockets and forcing Eddie to stop at his height. The shady human frowns when he recognized the detective.

« Mr Valiant? »

« Good evening, Mr Drew! »

« What are you doing here ? »

« I lent this van to the Toons for their parade, but given what happened, I got it back. And with all this mess, I lost myself. I come back on my steps, I would find the right tunnel to go home. She belong to my wife, you understand. »

The director of SillyVision frowns, unconvinced by his words and Eddie's big smile. The detective notices this and, wanting to be convincing, he proposes:

« You want me to bring you back? »

Candice and Keffan refrain from screaming with indignation and Bendy freezes in the back. Luckily, Boris and Pepé have good reflexes and put their hands against his mouth before he screams his displeasure, suspecting that Valiant knows what he's doing. And, luckily again, Joey shakes his head.

« No, it'll be fine... » he mumbles away.

Eddie greets him with a gesture of hand then restarts. As soon as they are in the tunnel, the children re-settle on the bench and the vehicle continues its route quietly, far from the SillyVision. Bendy feels his heart lighten as he moves away from his prison and, exhausted by all his tears, he falls asleep against Boris. Casper smiles, finding the scene too cute, and with the wolf's agreement, he squeezes against the demon and uses his ghost cloth to cover him.

* * *

After a few minutes of relatively quiet driving in ToonTown, they finally arrive at their destination: Los Angeles, in front of the bar held by the detective's companion. Eddie gets out of the van and runs inside the bar, leaving Candice and Keffan ''alone'' in the vehicle. He finds the owner (Dolorès) serving customers with a swing time's music.

« Dolorès! You must help me! » the detective exclaims, joining her.

« What's the matter ? » she worries as she approaches her companion.

« We have a big problem in ToonTown and we have to hide someone. »

« Roger is having trouble again? »

« No, it's not Roger. But it is someone who risks his skin even in front of the Toons. »

Dolores frowns, then nods.

« Bring him in. »

* * *

Candice plays nervously with the edges of her dress while Keffan watches the surroundings.

« But what is he doing? » Aiden growls in the back.

« He must have tried to convince Aunt Dolorès. » the little rabbit-human says. « She mustn't be very happy to serve as a refuge for Toons. »

« **Because she thinks we're doing it on purpose?** » the voice of Bendy wakes up when he stops the vehicle.

« **Shhh !** » the voices of the others present groans.

Suddenly, Eddie comes out of the bar and opens the front door.

« Quick ! Come before someone sees us! » he said, moving aside to let the two children down before opening the back doors.

Bendy nervously squeezes his cloak (which Casper has recovered) to hide his face. The souls of Pepé and Ortensia rush out of the van and advance to the bar watching the presence of Toons... then they wave to others. Boris jumps out of the van and guides Bendy inside, keeping the hood of his cloak on the demon's head. However, without anyone noticing, a small drawn figure observes them carefully before running away, as if running for someone.

* * *

« We will be calm here. Since it's more a bar for Humans, the Toons won't think of looking for a ''Demon'' that hates humans. » Eddie explains when Bendy is shaking as he looks at the men around them.

« Hi Aunt Dolorès! » Candice smiles as she jumps on an empty bench in front of the Human woman.

« Hi my darling. » the property smiled before turning to his companion. « Can you tell me what Uncle Eddie brings back to me? »

« It's our friend, Bendy! He must be hidden from others otherwise he will have big problems. » the girl answers as her friends sit next to her with the demon.

When the souls get closer, some depart by noticing Pepé, which annoys the skunk.

« Hey ! A skunk soul even Toon, it smell nothing! »

« I confirm ! » the detective mumbles before turning to his companion who glares at him.

« Can you explain to me ? » she grunts, pointing at Bendy who drops the hood off his cloak.

« Basically, you have to keep him safe for a while because at ToonTown, it becomes serious. The former director of his studio says he's a monster while Candice, Aiden and Keffan say he's a frightened angel. Except that nobody in ToonTown believes them and they are so scared that he's like Doom that they want to kill him. »

Dolorès puts her hand on her mouth and stifles a slight cry of surprise. She looks at the little Demon who tries to keep his body steady and then leans over to Valiant.

« But what do I do if Toons come here? »

« I don't know, but I don't think it will happen. Given their current status, Pepé and Ortensia will stay here to watch with some Gremlins and they will warn if a Toon arrives. »

* * *

However, Eddie has barely finished his sentence that the little figure dressed in a pretty purple dress who was watching in the street enters the bar running and:

« Bendy? » a soft voice asks, almost as innocent as a child's.

All turn around except Bendy who is literally frozen in the spot, shocked by recognizing this voice before slowly turning to her.

At the entrance stands a small female Toon Demon. Her face is very similar to Bendy's but slightly smaller, thinner with long eyelashes and big eyes. She has horns above her head like the demon but she has a black haircut cut in the style of the 1920s (with the tips near her cheeks that rise slightly and a small bangs on the forehead) with a small white band around her forehead on which hangs a beautiful white rose. When she finally sees the face of the little devil, the devil girl smiles, even if a few tears bead in the corner of her eyes, and turns to the stairs screaming like a little girl who has just found her favorite doll:

« **Henry, Henry! I was right, Henry! It's Bendy !** »

Full with joy, the little one runs to the demon while a human of almost fifty with brown hair joins her, almost hoping. Boris freezes when he sees the Man but he quickly drops his eyes to Bendy when the little devil throws herself on his neck, crazy with joy, while Bendy is completely frozen.

« **Bendy, Bendy! My big brother !** » she chirps, squeezing as hard as she can.

Aiden frowns (just like Keffan and Candice).

« **Big Brother ?** » they are amazed aloud.

« Who is la petite demoiselle? » Pepé asks, leaning toward Boris.

« It's Pandora Devil. Joey wanted her to be Bendy's mate, but there was always friendship between them. As she was younger, Pandora and Bendy considered themselves siblings. »

* * *

Eddie frowns and looks at the two little demons. The little girl is smiling to the 'ears' while the dancing devil trembles between joy and shock, tears of ink running down his cheeks and the ink that composes him begins to flow on his forehead.

With a shaking gesture, he wipes the ink by sending it to the back of his head and squeezes his little Pandora, unable to believe that, like him, she could survive 30 years while being forgotten. Where had she been? Did Joey know she was alive? Is she in danger like him? So many questions jostle in his head... New tears run down his cheeks, forcing Keffan to take a handkerchief out of his hammerspace and pass it to Bendy, and the little one smiles as she departs to look at him.

« If you knew how scared I was that day. Everyone said that a monster had invaded the studio and had to flee. I tried to find you but I was dragged out. If there hadn't been Henry, ... »

« **Henry!?** » Bendy suffocates.

The Human who accompanies the little demon girl goes, forcing the dancing demon to raise his head ... and he freezes in recognition.

* * *

Henry, since it's him, observes the scene smiling, a little apart. How could his little Bendy, the smiling little Toon whom he had seen ''be born'' and grow happily while marveling at everything and nothing and especially by dancing and singing, had he become so black and cruel? He couldn't believe it ... and seeing these big eyes filled with sadness, astonishment and joy, the Human understands that everything is false as he thought.

Understanding that they were attending a reunion, Eddie gently dismissed Pandora and Boris moved the children away, leaving the Toon and his Animator face-to-face. Henry feels his eyes shining under tears and smiles as he looks at his little Toon. The first he saw born, and even though he loves all his Toons, the dancing demon he brought back to life had a special place in his heart.

Bendy stays there, with no other expression than the ones shows in his eyes ... until the little Toon glares at him and turns back furiously to avoid looking at Henry.

« **GO AWAY, FILTHY TRAITOR !** » he roared like a furious animal.

All are surprised by this explosion of anger. Henry approaches the demon quietly.

« Bendy ... please, little guy, listen to me ... »

« **I HAVE NO WISH TO HEAR ANOTHER OF YOUR LIES !** » Bendy yells, turning to him, starting to drizzle in anger what surprises the Human who has never seen that. « **YOU ABANDONED US WITH THAT MAD GUY! You left us alone, defenseless to this psychopath! He used us as vulgar objects that could be broken and thrown away! We lived hell! Especially after he bought this ink machine! This evil machine! While you ...** »

Clenching his fists, the Dancing Demon begins to tremble and tears of ink appear in the corner of his eyes.

« You were somewhere without worrying for a moment about us ... so suddenly, all that I see now, ... **IT'S THAT YOU AREN'T BETTER THAN HIM!** »

Then, no longer able to support all this flood of emotions that overwhelms him, Bendy starts to cry and falls on his knees. Everything in the bar stopped to watch the scene. Even the music has been cut off. The only noise still audible is the Toon's sobs. Henry approaches him to be able to press him against him but Bendy recoils and orders him:

« **Don't touch me !…** »

« Bendy ... if I had known what Joey had done to you ... »

« **SHUT UP !** » Bendy cries, covering his ears and bending over in two, refusing to hear more.

« Little fellow... I'm your friend ... do you know that anyway? ... »

« **NO !** » The dancing demon is screaming, persisting in remaining deaf to the explanations. « **HUMANS AREN'T MY FRIENDS, I HATE THEM ! I HATE THEM WITH ALL MY SOUL ! THEY ARE ONLY ASSASSINS ! LIARS !** »

« That's not true, Bendy. » Henry sighs, unable to believe that his little demon has become a hateful monster as Joey would have liked. « I know you can't hate Humanity. I know Joey hurt you. You, Boris, Pandora and even Alice. And since she's not here, I think something much more horrible happened to her than Boris's. You must know why I really left. »

Henry kneels in front of him even though Bendy continues to clog his ears. Boris knows that this is only protection. He had been so hurt and betrayed that he preferred to be cautious even though he had hoped for the return of their animator for years. But what frightens him is that he is in an environment he doesn't know unlike the SillyVision studio.

« Joey had become really strange, Bendy ... much more than usual. I didn't see myself staying where I didn't feel comfortable. I didn't want to take you with me but Joey refused, saying that as he was the director, you belong to him. So I went to meet different lawyers to assert my rights on you, pretending to look for new scenarios for your episodes. I didn't think he could hurt you ... »

« **YOU LIE ! You're on the side of this dirty monster, as always! Go and find him, your dear friend, and disappear from my life!** »

Henry sighs. How could he make Bendy listen to reason?

« Bendy, little fellow... »

« **LEAVE ME !** » The dancing demon was raging again, raising his hand to slap Henry.

Except that, in his anger, he doesn't realize that the ink that drips from his hands takes on the appearance of sharp claws. Before Boris or the children can react, Bendy's hand slams violently ... and ink squirts like blood across the room.

* * *

Looking up, Bendy is horrified to see Pandora between him and Henry. The demon girl found herself with the face completely scratched and ink dripping from her wounds. The girl raises her head... then smiles.

« Watch out, big brother! Look what you did to me. » she laughs.

The dancing demon goes back, horrified, and puts his hands on his mouth, paralyzed. He trembles while staring at his sister but the the little Toon doesn't seem worried. She knows that Henry can arrange that for her whenever she wants. Of course, there will still be scars under the new layer of ink but it's better than a human injured for nothing.

Henry takes advantage that Bendy is frozen by the shock to approach and hug him. The demon is so disturbed that he drips but the former animator doesn't care. He had already been covered with ink before so if he had to be so to comfort his little Toon, he would do it.

« I'm sorry, Bendy ... I should have been there to prevent this disaster ... » he said, ignoring the ink.

Bendy trembles, his reason telling him to push Henry away when his heart tells him that Henry is back ... then he begins to hug the Human, crying.

« He took me everything... this junk took everything from me... My celebrity... my fans... my friends... Boris... and even... »

The little demon's tears become thicker, covering his animator's shirt with black .

« All right, Bendy ... you'll tell me all about it when you're near... » Henry smiled as he rocked him like a little child. « I'm here now. I'm not leaving anymore. I'll get you out of there, little guy. You will find all that you have lost. I promise you... »

The dancing demon cry, knowing that it would be difficult to return something that Joey stole from him, but the presence of the Human who created him, brought back to life and raised with the other Toons reassures him. Trembling, he squeezes his animator even harder and allows himself to call Henry with a name that the young man would have loved to accept if there hadn't been Joey and his law of ''no familiarity with the Toons''.

« Dad… »

Henry is touched when he hears this name from Bendy and coaxes him like a child. After a few minutes, they separate and the little black and white Toon wipes his tears, stabilizing his body as much as he can.

* * *

Seeing the almost dejected Toon's look, Eddie turns to his wife.

« Dolorès! Give me the bottle of bourbon. »

« I thought you stopped. » the woman sighs.

« It's not for me ! And leave me alone with that! First Roger, now you! »

The detective's wife takes the bottle and a glass she gives to Valiant. The detective fills the glass with alcohol then hands it to the dancing demon.

« Look! Swallow that. It will do you good. »

Bendy takes the glass, suspicious, wears it near his face and sniffs. He grimaces at the strong smell.

« What is this diluent junk? » he asks, pushing the glass back on the bar.

« Have you never drunk alcohol? »

The devil darling shrugs, shaking his head. Joey allowed him nothing but being a demon. Eddie frowns and takes the drink.

« That, kid, it's bourbon. A typical American whiskey! And it's not dangerous. Look. »

Regardless of his wife's gaze, the Human empties the glass in one go. While Boris and Pandora have already seen this, Bendy has the same look as a child. The detective gives him a new drink and:

« Go. Your turn. »

The dancing demon hesitates taking the glass, takes a deep breath and swallows the bourbon in a row ... but barely the alcohol comes into his mouth he spits it by posing the glass and coughs violently, forcing Boris to hit him in back while Pandora and the children burst out laughing. As soon as he is able to breathe, he grimaces and shouts:

« **AH! THAT TEARS THE TEETH ! IT'S ATROCIOUS !** »

Jerking to try to chase away the taste, he finally wiped his tongue with his glove. All his friends burst out laughing. Was it that little Toon with childish behavior that scared ToonTown?

* * *

 **HERE IS! Chapter 10 writes quite quickly thanks to a first writing: D I hope you like it :)**

 **So as my Joey Drew would be played by Johnny Depp, my Henry would be played by an actor whom I think you will have recognized: Robert Downey Jr. to know Mr Sherlock Holmes :) He is a very good actor and I think he would do an excellent Henry :)**

 **Ah! Above all, notifications are noted ***

*The Professor's bumbling sidekick, a bulldog who walks and dresses like a human being in _Felix the Cat_

 **That's it :D see you next time :D And don't forget to leave a comment :D**


	12. Chapter 11: Bendy's true story

**Inked in Mystery**

 **Chapter 11 : Bendy's true story**

* * *

 **WARNING! This chapter may contain some shocking scenes. I know those are Toons but I prefer warn in case of sensitive souls.**

* * *

After several hours discussing (Boris explaining to Pandora that he was not quite dead), Dolores had closed the bar and Bendy and the children had fallen asleep. The little ones slept tightly together, using Casper's blanket, and Bendy rolled into the fetal position on Henry's lap, one hand holding the animator's shirt.

When her younger sister realizes it, she begins to chirp with joy.

« Awww! He is so cute ! »

The human looks down at him and smiles. He takes him right in his arms like a child and cradles him quietly.

« Could I ask you a few questions? » Eddie asks Henry.

« About what ? »

« About the studio, the director, all that. There is too much unclear behind all that. »

Henry's eyes darken and he looks down at the sleeping demon.

« I think the best thing would be to talk with him. » the former animator responds.

« It's getting late. » Dolorès intervenes by finishing putting away her glasses. « If you allow, we'll talk about it tomorrow. »

« You're right, Dolorès. Listen to Henry, since you have just found Bendy and it is dangerous for him to come out for the moment, I will ask you to stay here for this night. That way, you will be able to reassure him if he is afraid and you will be able to watch the mosquitoes. » Eddie suggests showing the kids.

« I see. » Henry smiled. « There is no problem. »

Dolorès and Eddie leave the secret room where the Toons hide, leaving Henry to lie on the floor, putting Bendy on his lap. But as soon as he does that, Pandora jumps not far from his brother and snuggles against him to sleep smiling. It was like two cats sleeping in a ball one nestled against the other.

« Don't be shy especially. » Henry laughed ironically as he now served them as mattresses.

But as the little devils are too cute and by living with Pandora, he had become used to seeing the girl having this kind of reaction, he said nothing. Boris, on the other hand, lies down and huddled behind Henry, curling up a bit to allow the animator to rest his head against him (which surprised the Human who didn't expect the soul of the Wolf can have that kind of sensations), then close his eyes for the night with his old friend.

* * *

The other souls also rested except for Pepé who is looking towards ToonTown, thinking that this creature was still there, and Gods alone knew what this horrible thing was capable of. The skunk looks up to the full moon and thinks of his dear Penelope. He hadn't dared to see her again in this form of fear that she would reject him.

 _I sense there's something in the wind_

 _That feels like tragedy's at hand_

 _And though I'd like to stand by her_

 _Can't shake this feeling that I have_

 _The worst is just around the bend_

Sighing, the skunk crosses the wall and goes perched on the roof to better observe the star, thinking about Penelope and the many evenings they spent under the moon, the very amorous cat and the skunk amazed by her beautiful eyes that shone like diamonds under the lunar light.

 _And does she notice my feelings for her?_

 _And will she see how much she means to me?_

 _I think it's not to be_

Pepé feels tears in his eyes. His worst nightmare was becoming reality: he was separated from the one he loved by a monster and now he had lost everything. His companion, his friends, his life ...

 _Under a tree at quarter three, I had some hope in me_

 _But life was taken from me, but I did not feel peace_

 _I made a vow within my own that love will come to me_

 _but then she is and suddenly I had been found_

 _I adore her!_

Penelope invaded his head, making him cry tears. This wish under the moon, it was something he had heard from his elders the first time he went to ToonTown after meeting the previous females he was chasing. Bugs had reassured him as a friend, a big brother, and had told him that by making a wish to the moon, he could have what he wants. Shortly after, Penelope was created. From then on, they had been a couple.

Wiping his tears, he stands up and advances on the roof.

 _What will become of my dear friend_

 _Where will this actions lead us then?_

 _Although I'd like to join the crowd_

 _In their enthusiastic cloud_

 _Try as I may, it doesn't last_

His body trembles with grief. He feels that his heart is tightening but his heart is no longer in his chest. Sniffing, he stares at the sky, seeing his first encounter with Penelope, scenes they were playing together and their evenings 'en tête-à-tête'. How is it possible for a Toon to suffer as much? At this moment, Bendy and Boris seem like heroes to him. For thirty years, they suffered like him, one with one heart and the other without.

 _What is this, a painful twist, is this a bitter kiss?_

 _There's so much life left in her eyes, it should not end like this_

 _My dreams were slain, my face was stained with memories of my pain_

 _But peace still came, I'll give her the same, I will be okay…._

Smiling, feeling as if his heart was beating again, he feels better, feeling like a hope even if he knows that it's tiny.

 _And will we ever end up together?_

 _No, I think not, it's never to become_

 _For I am not the one_

Even if hope in his ''heart'' remains, his reason tells him that it will be very difficult for him to relive and find his sweet Penelope. Smiling, he looks up at the moon, hoping everything will work out.

* * *

At ToonTown, sleep comes slowly after all the hustle and bustle of the wasted Halloween party. They fell asleep knowing that night watchmen had been placed at each entrance and exit of ToonTown in case Bendy tried to return. Grief had weakened Penelope, who had taken refuge in her sleep, her tears still running down her cheeks.

But only the families of the ''corrupt'' children remain awake, too concerned about the fate that this demon could have for their little ones. Roger was pacing and mumbling, SourPuss caressing Gandy's feathers, the goose crying silently, unlike Jeckle, who is crying loudly in the arms of his husband. Although their tears were exhausting, they would stay up all night if necessary, waiting for news of their children, hoping maybe to see them back in the night after escaping the demon.

* * *

Bendy moaned, stirring in his sleep. Suddenly, he feels something sticky on his hand. Intrigued, he opens his eyes... and he sees ink. Horrified because it isn't his, he stands up screaming and moves away as far as possible. Suddenly, a tall figure appears in front of him ... and the dancing demon shakes while recognizing him.

« Joey? » he's horrified.

The Human approaches him, his eyes shining red and smiling like the Devil himself ... or like that perverse priest of the novel _Notre-Dame de Paris_ that Boris had read once. Bendy feels the fear invade him and the strange energy invades him like at Halloween or at the SillyVision disaster. He walks away as fast as he can when, to his horror, Joey begins to melt, becoming black and looking like a being of ink. Panic invades even more Bendy seeing this despicable hand approaching him (black drool coming out of the mouth of the Human). He fled as fast as he can when he freezes in horror at seeing the bodies of his friends, all heartless!

« **AIDEN! KEFFAN! CANDICE! PANDORA! HENRY!** » he panicked.

He restrains himself from screaming as he feels the fear and tears flood over him and turns around to see that Joey has disappeared to make room for a horrible, fat demon that look a lot like him, limping because of a twisted leg. Joey's voice chuckles in the air and Inky monsters emerge from the ground, maddening the dancing demon, when he feels a sharp pain in his arm. Lowering his eyes, the demon froze at the sight of his arm, which seems to be boiling before swelling, using much of the excess ink that composes him. His other arm suddenly starts to act the same way, making him panic. It had happened once and, to his horror, he knows what that means.

« **No ! No no no ! No, stop!** » he fumbles, trying to chase the ink out of his arms. « **I don't want to become a demon! STOP ! NO ! LET ME !** » he shouts as he feels his body acting the way his reason vanishes, engulfed by fear and hatred.

* * *

Bendy stands up screaming, horrified and dripping galore, making everyone around him jump.

« Bendy? Are you okay ? » Boris worries about joining, putting his transparent hands on the demon's shoulders.

Bendy raises his eyes filled with tears towards him... before sobbing uncontrollably. As Henry have finishes redrawing his wounded face, Pandora runs to hug his brother.

« Awww, my Bendou. It's useless to cry. Look at all your friends! You have lost a lot but you have found as much now. »

The eldest of the little devils looks around to see the souls of the victims of the monster who smile at him, just like the children. None of them had left. They were all there, with him, to support him. Henry approaches with a smile. Bendy hardly notices him jumping around his neck crying like a child. The human pats his back and squeezes him gently.

« All right, Bendy. We are here now. We are all here for you. You never squeezed alone again. » the animator promises by wiping the big tears inks of his darling devil.

Despite the flashes of his nightmare that mingle with memories of the SillyVision disaster, Bendy calms down and ends up smiling by listening to the heart of his creator.

* * *

A little later, Dolorès arrives to open the bar but, first and foremost, she wants to check how her 'guests' are doing. She sees Henry shirtless under his overalls cleaning brushes and ink stains on his shirt with a little thinner he still has on him (old animator's reflex).

« Everything went well ? » she asks, coming closer, drawing the brown man's attention.

« Of course. » the fifties smiled before showing his hands full of ink. « Just a nightmare in the morning. But Bendy is calm nom. You can bring your customers without problems, Dolorès ... if I can call you like that. »

« Eddie isn't jealous and everyone calls me by my first name. » the owner reassures.

Henry smiles and, finishing washing his hands and putting away his clean brushes, he asks:

« When will Eddie come to question Bendy? I would have to prepare it before otherwise... he could do like this morning. »

As proof, he shows his shirt where big ink stains are still visible despite the thinner. The Human nods, understanding.

« It shouldn't be long. This story has been working on it for months! His desk is as tidy as 47! »

Even if Henry doesn't understand the hint, he suspects it means ''not very orderly''.

* * *

Eddie arrives at the bar a little later, knowing that there are only regulars as rare customers in the morning. They would be quiet to talk. Upon entering, he finds the little troop installed near the bar on which Bendy happily dances on a classic tune. Seeing the so-called demon spinning like a ballerina without tutu, the detective refrains from giggling. It was this little effeminate guy who was terrorizing the entire city of Toons?

« Even Bugs do that kind of gag. » he mumbled with a small smile as he stepped forward.

He sits next to them (not being strangled by Candice's hug) and waits for the dancing demon to finish his little dance. As soon as the music stops, Bendy bows to the applause and laughter of the guests before noticing Valiant. He bows one last time and runs to join his friends while Dolorès continues to serve his customers.

« I'm glad you're fine, Bendy. » the detective smiles even if the little devil looks away, still not reassured by the Human. « But I have to ask you a few questions to better understand what's going on. »

« You open an investigation, Uncle Eddie? » Candice chirps with a look that reminds her father's to her godfather.

« Candice, it's been weeks since he opened an investigation! » Keffan sighs. « Since the day you met Bendy. »

« Really? First news... » the rabgirl mumbles thinking.

« Henry, when did you start working at SillyVision? » Eddie questions without considering the children who continue to explain themselves to each other.

Henry smiled, caressing Bendy's little head, catching the demon's gaze. Turning to others, he says:

« I think everyone will understand better if we take up the story from the beginning. »

At the mention of a story, the children are silent and everyone settles to hear, Aiden perched on the head of Keffan who is carefully sitting on the chair while Candice is standing and head carefully held in her hands, elbows on the table. Casper, on the other hand, settles on a shelf not too far (his ghostly body passing through the different objects) and the souls listen without releasing their duty of surveillance.

* * *

Smiling at the impatient little faces of the children, the animator begins:

« It started in 1920, when the Toons were just starting to become famous. At the time, Joey and I were friends and young people. I was 15 years old and he was 20. When we started the animation watching the success of cartoons, people thought we were crazy to get into it as young and that's what we have given the name ''SillyVision''. Boris is the first character I drew and who was 'born' in the studio. »

The wolf blushes a little with a small smile before circling his arms around the neck of his demon who looks up at him before enjoying the embrace even if it isn't so warm from before. Henry watches with a small smile before continuing.

« We did little cartoons until in 1925, Joey decided to make a mascot who would become the star of our studio and our cartoons. And ... how to say? ... his conditions for creating the character were very ... weird! »

* * *

 _June 1925:_

Joey Drew had gathered all his animators to talk about his new project: a mascot for their studio! A little star who would become the face of SillyVision! Except Henry, then 20, is surprised by the conditions.

« **Excuse me !?** » one of the oldest animators is indignant (to Henry's right).

« You understood me very well! » the young director responds standing upright and straightening his glasses. « This mascot must be an evil creature! »

« But how are we supposed to **seduce** the public with an **evil** being? » another gets angry.

« You are the animators! Look Henry! » he says, pointing to his young friend. « He managed to get us started with a wolf! And it's not the sweetest animal we can find! »

« And why Boris can't be the mascot? » Henry asks. « After all, this is our first character and... »

« **IT WON'T WORK !** » Joey screams, punching the table.

All are frozen by the explosion of anger of the young man ... but it calms and stands up.

« I want a creature known to be evil! » he insists, straightening his glasses. « Offer me your drawings, gentlemen! I would choose our mascot in two months! »

* * *

 _2 months later, in August:_

Henry is at his desk, always thinking about the future character. He had tried everything: vampires, werewolves, ghosts, and so on... but none pleased him. Sighing, he puts down his pencil and mumbles. Boris is quietly reading when he hears his creator get upset.

« Are you all right, Henry? » he worries closing his book.

The Human turns to his character and smiles at him.

« I'm fine, Boris. It's just Joey and his new mascot. He wants an evil creature, but at the same time he must be able to please... »

Henry sighs again as the wolf watches the white sheet while thinking.

« What if you tried with a devil? » Boris proposes.

The young animator freezes and stands up suddenly. He looks at the page and thinks.

« A devil ? »

« Yes, but a little not to scare the children. » the Toon responds while watching his animator.

Henry is frozen ... then he smiles and jumps around the neck of his drawn friend.

« **You're a genius, Boris !** » the young man exclaims.

Boris smiles and, as soon as the Human has let go, he goes away to read elsewhere, leaving the young man to finish his sketch he starts with a big smile.

* * *

A few hours later, all the animators are gathered in the room and present their character ranging from a bloody vampire to the blind zombie through the fearful ghost and the vegetarian werewolf ... but Joey like none. The young director grumbles while reading his book '' _The Illusion of Living_ '' and notes in a small notebook. Furious, he begins to rage:

« **BUT YOU ARE A REAL STRIP OF BROKEN ARMS!? I'm just asking you for an evil creature! Not a bunch of failed monsters!** »

The animators nervously put away their drawings... except Henry who finishes scribbling.

« I just finished, Joey! » he exclaims, sliding his pencil behind his ear.

Joey looks at him with a jaded air... then sighs. With a gesture of hand, he allows his friend to present his character. Smiling like a child, Henry stands in front of everyone and hangs his drawing on the board. When he departs, all are surprised. The drawing depicts a small figure with horns on his round head (head that seems floated above his body and adorned with a broad smile), a long tail with a tip at the end (tip vaguely reminiscent of a heart) and hooves on the feet. A devil! And all around, accessories are drawn like a bowtie and white gloves and black shoes. A name is even written under the picture: Bendy!

« Gentlemen, I present to you Bendy, the Dancing Demon! » Henry happily presents with a big smile.

The other animators look at each other and chatter, wondering if this little round and likeable character could really be the evil being that Joey is looking for. The young director observes the drawing without any particular expression then puts down his book, gets up with his notebook in hand and goes to the drawing, disturbing a little Henry. His friend stays there watching the drawing and then observes his notebook. Pulling a pen out of his pocket, he starts ticking things and a smile begins to appear. Observing the drawing one last time, he reads his notebook again ... then nods, smiling.

« Perfect ! » he says, astonishing the others. « As always, Henry, you found the perfect character! And that name, Bendy, is nice. It will please the audience! **We start the projection on the matrix womb immediately!** » Joey ordered out of the office, closing his notebook after picking up his book.

The other animators resumed their drawings grumbling and leaving Henry alone. The young animator remains neutral a few moments then, as he is alone, he bursts out laughing and screams with joy. But before he has time to start a dance of joy, Joey returns to the office.

« Henry! We're waiting for you and Bendy to start his creation! » the young director smiled.

The young man nods and retrieves the drawing. Following his friend, he smiles at the drawing.

« We're going to have a great adventure, Bendy! »

* * *

 _November 1959:_

« What is the matrix womb? » Aiden wonders.

Candice and Keffan also seem lost. Bendy and Boris are a little surprised that the two Toons don't know what the matrix womb is ... but Casper explains:

« Aiden and Candice are Toons-born. They are born from an egg or a mother and not from the matrix womb like us. »

Henry smiles, shaking his head and calmly explains:

« The matrix womb is a very old, very thick special screen that serves as a 'pocket' for the development of a Toon, much like the belly of a mother. Each studio has a matrix womb and by force to project drawings on it, it becomes magic. The Toon's prototype or final drawings are projected several times on this screen and, as the Toon is formed, it is formed between the layers of the matrix womb, getting closer and closer to the real world. When it is finally near, the Toon moves to try to go out and we open the matrix womb to allow it to ''be born''. The first days, we are with a Toon in its final form but with baby behavior. »

Bendy frowns and pulls out his animator, feeling that comment was mostly for him. Boris bursts out laughing, remembering Bendy's early days.

« You were there at the birth of Bendy? » Candice smiled.

Henry smiles ... but at the same time, he seems saddened. He nods and says:

« Bendy was born 2 months later, on Halloween. Normally, he should have been born around mid-November but ... I should have noticed that Joey was weird right now. »

* * *

 _October 31, 1925:_

Henry enters the office of the matrix womb with Boris smiling. The huge screen still fascinated the Human and the Wolf Toon saw this for the first time since his own birth. The young man greets the projectionist who responds with a big smile and a nod before approaching the screen. A movement is perceptible across the canvas and, marveling, Henry puts his hand on it to feel the Toon moved. He is surprised to feel the shape of the Toon more precisely but he doesn't move more. Intrigued, he turns to the projectionist.

« Hey, Tom! Something happened during a screening? » the young man asks as the wolf approaches, too curious to be able to feel his younger brother move.

« No, nothing special. » The other employee answers. « Mr. Drew simply asked me to project the image on the matrix womb more often and longer. »

« **What!?** » the animator suffocates.

« What is happening ? » a voice sighs.

Turning, Henry falls face to face with Joey who enters calmly, straight despite his stained fingers. The young man then rushes to his associate, obviously furious.

« What are you doing, Joey? **You are crazy !** You know that the matrix womb needs time to develop the Toon! Trying to go faster, it's not going to fix things! On the contrary! »

« We need Bendy very quickly! This Toon must come quickly! »

« It's been just two months since we projected Bendy! He still needs a good month, maybe two! If we continue like this, there may be problems and you know it! » Henry pleads.

Joey just stares at the young man without the shadow of an emotion on his face. His young friend is also almost scared, outraged …

* * *

But before he can react, Boris scream:

« **HENRY! I think there is a problem!** »

All turn around and see that the matrix womb suddenly becomes horribly black! Like a piece of fabric dipping in black ink! To tell the truth, ink drips as if the matrix womb was more than gorged.

« Damn it ! » Henry swears running towards the matrix womb. « You have to open the matrix womb or Bendy will drown! »

The others (except Joey who remains terribly neutral) are frozen by stupor and fear. Not finding the scissors usually used to open the screen, the young man takes out his penknife and plants it in the matrix womb by cutting a large cut in the canvas. He deviates suddenly to avoid ending up covered by the ink that comes out of the screen... but no trace of the Toon. Joey grumbles looking up visibly annoyed while everyone thinks that the little demon didn't survive his accelerated creation. Boris lowers his head, his heart tight.

Henry mumbles, passing his ink-covered hand through his hair, his heart squeezing with fear and sadness... when he notices a tail with a heart-shaped tip coming out of the opening. Approaching, he sees that something is still in the matrix womb... but it's closing.

« **NO !** » the young animator suddenly screams, maddening everyone by throwing himself on the matrix womb to keep it open. « **Help me, fuck! Bendy is here, he may still be alive!** »

The wolf Toon rushes to the matrix womb and grabs the edges to keep them open. The young projectionist, a janitor and other studio members rush to help him, allowing Henry to dive his hands into the matrix womb to recover the Toon. The young man sees Joey standing, without flinching, and that would scorn him if he wasn't busy trying to get the Toon out. He pulls his legs (unable to enter the matrix womb) and looks for the body and head to be able to take it out and hold it immediately. Once his legs are pulled out of the womb that his colleagues and friends have more and more trouble keeping open, the young man finally feels the whole body and head.

« **Hurry up, Henry!** » One of the animators panics. « **The matrix womb is closing!** »

« It's good ! I hold him ! »

Holding the body with one hand, he grabs his head with the other hand and pulls the Toon towards him. As soon as the head is out, Henry hugs Bendy against him and moves away as fast as possible, letting the others let go of the closing matrix. It was going to have to wait a little while the matrix womb 'heals' before being able to recreate a Toon.

* * *

Henry sighs, squeezing the Toon against him but panic, feeling that Bendy isn't moving. Pulling aside the little character to see him, the young animator is captivated to see how much he looks like his drawing but the fact that the little being doesn't breathe make him panic.

« Oh no ... **Bendy! Breathe, little guy!** » he yells, tapping the Toon's cheeks to try to make him react.

« Don't tired yourself with it, Henry. » Joey sighs, more disappointed than sad. « If the matrix womb hasn't managed to hold it, there is nothing to do. »

The animator freezes, horrified. How could Joey be so cold? It was perhaps his first Toons birth, but he knows they are alive and deserve to be treated as living beings and not vulgar objects. As Joey slowly walks out of the room, Henry hugs Bendy against him, feeling a faint heartbeat through the little character's ink, and rage:

« **You're a coward, Joey!** But don't count on me to let go if he still has a chance! »

While everyone is stunned because no one talks like that to Joey (who froze in front of the door before glaring to his friend), the young man poses Bendy on the ground and listens to the heart that beats weakly under all the ink that makes up the little demon. Determined by this sound, Henry opens the mouth of the Toon (allowing the ink that was there to flow), blows air into the little one's mouth hoping to start breathing but, as he gets no result, he begins to do a cardiac massage. Boris and the others watch Henry sweat blood and water trying to resuscitate the little Toon... and as Joey prepares to make a comment, a violent shiver runs through Bendy's body, forcing Henry to step aside.

The demon begins to wince and then coughs violently, spitting ink from his lungs. After several coughs, the Toon can finally take a deep breath. Henry smiled when he saw Bendy shake and breathe and he felt tears of relief on hearing the little moan and seeing him fidgeting ''foolishly'' on the ground, nervously moving his tail and his hind legs to the white hooves.

« All right, Bendy. » he smiled, taking him in his arms like a child. « Here, hush... »

Everyone applauds as they see their new Toon alive (and frightened by cries of joy, forcing him to hug his animator) and Boris approaches to finally see him. The two Toons then look into each other's eyes... and the wolf feels his heart melt as he sees Bendy's innocent look. The little one reaches out towards the wolf's face, making small noises that are quite similar to those of a baby, and when he touches the wolf's muzzle, he calms down and holds out his other hand to touch it. At this moment, he really looks like a baby who discovers the world.

« Come on, Bendy. » Henry smiled as he picked up the little one, drawing the demon's attention to him. « We'll make you discover the studio. »

* * *

 _November 1959:_

Pandora cannot hold back a little cry with a smile.

« I didn't know my brother was so cute when he was born! » Pandora chirps, making Boris laugh and blush Bendy. « Even though my big brother has always been so cute! »

« **Pandy!** » the Dancing Demon grumbles, becoming almost as red as Candice's dress.

The devil girl smiles like a child proud of its small effect while the children burst out laughing.

Eddie watches the Toons antics amusedly before turning to Henry.

« So you say that Joey Drew had already started to be weird? »

« Yes, but since the studio worked well, nobody said too much. » the former animator sighs. « It's just that we thought he was a little crazier than normal. We were all more interested in the success of the Bendy episodes and, as soon as the matrix womb was ready, we looked for other scenarios. One of our doublers, Susie Campbell, who had the idea to create a friend-foe in Bendy and we created Alice Angel. »

« Alice? This Alice Angel? » Candice asks, dipping her hand into her hammerspace.

She then takes out the stuffed angel and shows it to the Human, trying to see if she is right. He nods.

« It's her, yes. Initially, it should have been a real little white and pure angel with big wings... but there was a problem with her ''birth''. There was ink left from Bendy's birth and when she passed, the ink clinked her white clothes with black. Seeing she didn't look like a real angel anymore but she wasn't a failure, we shot her first episode with Bendy trying to make her angelic for the beginning, then we changed her back-story. »

* * *

 _April 18, 1926 :_

« **Perfect ! We cut !** » Joey screams, interrupting the shooting at the end of the penultimate scene.

The new recruit, Alice Angel, finally allows herself to breathe and falls heavily on the ground, finally losing her form of pure angel to that of black angel.

« Alice? Are you okay ? » Bendy worries as he helps her get up.

« **Bendy! Concentrate on your demon role!** » the director rages.

« But Alice is barely standing up! » the dancing demon defends.

A look from the Human silences him and Boris runs to join them. Alice might be younger than Bendy, she was much more mature than him, almost like a mom.

« All right, Bendy ... I just have to catch my breath. » she smiled, sweeping a strand of hair.

Henry watches that, sorry. Alice was really not stable at all. The fact that the overflow of ink from Bendy's birth had tinged black made her fragile. Grabbing Joey's arm, he mutters:

« You see she's not doing well! You smile and you make the peacock to please Susie but Alice won't stand if we do nothing! Doing the ostrich won't solve anything! »

« Do you think I'm doing the ostrich? I reviewed the scenario of the episode, figure yourself! Sammy has already made the music and the props for the stage are prepared. » he said, handing the script to Henry.

The young man frowns and reads.

« Having fun with young cherubs, Bendy meets a beautiful angel named Alice. Favorite of Paradise by her kindness and purity, our demon decides to seduce her ... Then ... accept despite the warnings of her cadets ... Down on earth ... despite all the temptations ... Alice remains to see the good ... »

The Human then freezes while reading the last paragraph.

« When Bendy agrees to bring Alice back to heaven, the pure angel embraces the devil to thank him for this day. But this act removes her purity, changing the pretty angel... into a Fallen Angel !? **Do you want to show the public a Bendy guilty of corrupting an angel? Bendy is a nice devil, not a demonic being!** »

« Even a dancing demon remains a demon! » Joey sighs. « And that's the only way to make Alice stable. She must be colored black to hold and an angel isn't black. By making it ''Fallen Angel'', we explain her black color. »

Henry glares at Joey. It was another excuse to force Bendy to behave like a monster... but he knows that Bendy isn't like that and that if they didn't do anything, Alice wouldn't last long. Sighing, he eagerly throws the script and returns to the Toons to make the changes that will save Alice's life.

* * *

A few hours later, the episode director ends the episode _Sent From Above_.

« Perfect, everybody! We pass it in front of Joey and everything is good! »

Bendy sighs, delighted that the director wasn't there during the shooting of the end of the episode. The script didn't please him at all so he had improvised everything to make Alice's good friend and the angel understood it very well. Even though it wasn't the scenario, the Humans had found it so well that they let them do it.

« Sorry, Alice... » the dancing demon muttered.

The Fallen Angel turns to him, smiling. Now in her new form, she had black hair in which two horns protruded and with a beautiful halo, a beautiful black dancer's dress which revealed her beautiful legs and a little bow on her dress.

« Why be sorry? Look at me ! » she smiled, spinning on herself. « I was unable to go three steps without feeling exhausted and there I can sing and dance as much as I want! I should thank you, my little Bendy! »

Smiling, she kneels in front of her new friend and takes him in her arms to kiss her on the cheek.

« **Yuck! Keep your germs!** » Bendy grunts like a child, making Boris and Alice laugh.

* * *

 _November 1959:_

« But where is Alice now? » Aiden asks.

Bendy starts shaking, tears bead in his eyes and forcing Boris to hug him. Henry sighs and turns to Eddie to explain what he knows.

« Bendy and Alice became friends but more like a family and their episodes worked well even though fans preferred Boris. Pandora was created in 1928 to create a fiancée in Bendy but they just became brother and sister. »

The devil girl smiles at the mention of her name. Her animator smile back.

« How long did you stay? » the detective asks.

« Until July, 1929. Afterwards, Joey had gone crazy. He was isolating himself in the basement, had secret talks with Sammy Lawrence the director of the music department, and many other things. »

Boris starts shaking, worrying Bendy, but a look and a wolf's smile calm him down. Henry sighs.

« I don't know what happened next but... I knew I couldn't stay. And as Joey refused to leave me the Toons, I left to find a legal way to get them back. I remember other people who thought I was leaving for another studio and wished me good luck for the future but also the Toons who were sad to see me go ... especially Bendy. »

The dancing demon blushes thinking back to this day. At first, he had shunned like a spoiled kid hoping that Henry would eventually stay. Boris had even had to drag him for official farewells... but as soon as the animator had joined the door, he realized he wouldn't see him again. He sees himself calling him, trying to join him, but Joey refused to let him approach the door. He remembers his tears (still light at the time) flowing cascading down his cheeks as he struggled to join Henry while shouting the name of his creator. With a last smile and a wave of his hand, Henry had left the studio, not without glaring at Joey.

* * *

 _July 1929:_

« **HENRY ! HENRY, DON'T GO ! PLEASE DON'T LET ME !** » Bendy cries, struggling.

But Henry goes through the door and walks away without another look. Wally closes the door behind him and the corridor is again plunged into the darkness tinged with the light of the lamps. Bendy freezes, allowing Joey to place him on the floor. He remains there, stupidly, to fix the door hoping to see Henry cross but the minutes quickly become hours and nothing moves at the door.

All went back to work, leaving the Dancing Demon alone... until Boris went to get him. Tears run down the little Toon's cheeks, saddening his elder brother. Putting a hand on his shoulder, he calls:

« Bendy? »

« He's gone ... Henry is gone... » he breathes, eyes haggard and tears streaming endlessly on his cheeks to black mark their passage.

Trying to shake, his heart squeezes and his lip trembles... then he burst into tears. Falling to his knees, he cries his pain, hoping to bring it out, but the more he cries, the more his heart sinks. It was as if the pain took hold of him... when Boris hugged him tightly against his chest while keeping a comforting softness. The wolf gets up and brings him into the room that he use as his bedroom.

« I'm sorry, Bendy... but I'm sure Henry will come back and get us out of this studio. As soon as you're 5 years old, Joey can't stop you from going out and we can live in ToonTown ... »

« But if Henry comes back ... » the demon sobs, calming himself to the sound of Boris's voice.

« He'll find us, Bendy. Henry always finds us. » the Wolf Toon promises before giving a light lick on the head of his younger brother.

Bendy feels his heart quicken at the feeling of the wolf's tongue on his forehead. For some time, Boris had been giving him funny sensations that he had never felt but had seen in many humans in the studio ... like Susie with Joey (although he doesn't understand what she finds him).

« Boris? ... »

« Hmm ... » the wolf mumbles as he looks down at him.

The little demon take his head in his hands and can plunge his big black eyes into those of the wolf. He feels Boris freezing but he asks:

« You will always stay with me! Isn't it ? »

Seeing the tears come back in those big eyes, Boris smiles and wipes the ink drops away from the demon child's cheeks before answering:

« Always, Bendy. Forever and ever… »

The two Toons look directly into each other's eyes... then join their lips as they have often seen making love, leaving their feelings passed through this first kiss.

* * *

The following days, the two lovers often found themselves in secret after their episodes, trying not to be noticed by the director, one knowing that Joey wanted him to behave like a demon, the other... because he knows that Joey Drew wouldn't approve of this 'liaison'. Pandora and Alice were the only ones in the know. The youngest had jumped like a kid before kissing her brother and the one he had chosen while the Fallen Angel had just smiled, very happy, like a mom (it was even the role she gave herself to Bendy and Pandora).

Except that with the departure of Henry, the atmosphere becomes darker in the studio and Joey began to experiment again and again on the Toons. Only Bendy and Pandora were spared and Boris made sure his devil darling didn't discover the horrors the director was doing. Bendy's soul was still too innocent for him to bear those horrors... but it was very difficult to hide the truth from his lover.

* * *

Alice arrives in the room where Boris was, sewing a piece of his arm. The wolf turns to her and bites his lips as she sees her condition. One of her arms had just come off his body and he had only one arm left (which held the other). She looked more than angry especially when she slammed her dismembered arm violently on the table.

« Can you explain exactly what Joey is doing? Because there I don't understand anything to his unlogical logic? » she indignantly assumes in front of him. « Yesterday, one of my brothers loses both wings and today me and my arm! I'm starting to get more than enough of these strange injections! What is he trying to do? »

After having finished repairing his own arm, the wolf stands there looking at the other wall in front of him seriously, as if he feels an unwanted presence on the other side.

« Boris, as our elder, you are our leader! You must intervene! It becomes more than insane! Joey scares us! » she insists.

« I know it! But whatever I say or do, Joey has decided to stay deaf to my words! We can only ask the other animators that we have to get back on our feet every time. » the wolf replies with a sigh.

« But the poor must be exhausted by force! And why don't they complain to Joey? » Alice asks, annoyed.

« Do you think they didn't try? And look at the number that it leads them! No need to insist, Alice. Joey gave himself the goal of drowning the studio in the abyss and him with it! » Boris answers.

Alice sighs, resting her arm intact on her hips, furious. Although she was an angel, the girl had an almost explosive temperament. She knew how to be very kind to those she loved but could take the behavior of a real tigress when it came to protecting hers... like a mother! Boris smiles, amused by the sulky girl.

* * *

Suddenly, they hear a shrill cry! As if someone was suffering the death of his life! The worst thing is that Alice knows who this cry belonged to! They leave the room and rush to where the cry could come... until they see the Toon cherub crawling before them, diluted little by little. He couldn't speak anymore, only spitting and grumbling with pain at the diluent that was gnawing at his being until he stopped, exhausted, almost dead and melted before them! Alice cries out in terror while trying to kneel, but the wolf stops her.

« **But let me go! He is suffering!** » she cries, trying to free herself from Boris' grasp so she can comfort her baby brother in his painful torment.

« We can't do anything for him, unfortunately. And if you touch him, you will die! » the wolf insists even if his tone shows that he is sad.

Fortunately, the sufferings of the poor little cherub stop quite quickly, leaving just a big task of painting on the floor. The beautiful Fallen Angel is frozen in horror... then she burst into tears, squeezing her older brother with her only arm. Boris gently squeezes her to comfort her... when he hears a voice he doesn't want to hear at this moment.

« Boris? What is happening ? Who has… ? »

Bendy suffocates, unable to finish his sentence by seeing the remains of the little cherub with Pandora, followed by Susie and other animators. All are horrified at seeing the remains of the little Toon on the ground. Bendy suddenly becomes pale and looks up at his friends... when he sees Alice's missing arm.

« **Alice, your arm! But ... but ... but what happened?** »

A door slams and everyone turns to see Joey arrive in the hallway, handing his tie properly. When he sees the hustle and bustle in the hallway, he frowns and looks at all the people without paying attention to Toon's leftovers on the floor.

« What is happening ? » he asks in a calm tone that immediately enrages Alice.

« **You know very well what's going on, you're sick!** » she yells, rushing towards him. « **You killers! KILLER!** »

If it weren't for Boris holding her, she would throw herself on this monster and strangle him before giving him all the horrors he had inflicted on them.

« Alice? ... » Bendy worries in a very low voice.

The young Fallen Angel freezes at this voice and turns to see Bendy (and Pandora) completely paralyzed. They never saw their friend like that and they had been spared by Joey for some reason she doesn't know. She calms down before turning to the director to glare at him.

« It's nothing, Bendy ... it's just the shock ... » Boris smiled as he joined his dancing Demon, lovingly caressing his lover's little black head.

The little one looks at Alice, worried, but the young lady forces a smile to comfort him... before bursting into tears when she sees one of the animators cleaning up the diluted remains of her brother. Despite Joey's eyes, Bendy runs to hug her to comfort her. The director goes away without a word but gives a look at Boris who says a lot. The wolf grumbled slightly, knowing that he had to intervene as soon as possible if he wanted to protect the chosen one from his heart.

* * *

The next day, the entire studio (except Joey) was surprised to see a huge ink machine arrive. The director said it was going to help them become bigger... but the guinea pigs of this crazy scientist knew that it was mainly to explain the excessive consumption of ink by the studio to repair his experiments.

Numerous pipes were installed throughout the building and a room was reserved for starting the machine. Unfortunately, the rickety installations didn't support the ink pressure. Many pipes exploded and were replaced, the music department was often flooded with ink, forcing them to install a pump in the office of the music department director, Sammy Lawrence.

The two men spoke frequently, disturbing others who found them more and more bizarre, and many complained of the noise of the machine and the ink running down the pipes as well as the unstable side of the installation. Many left the studio because of that, leaving the Toons behind without a look. But after many months, things accelerated one day …

* * *

 _February 10, 1930:_

Bendy wakes up on Boris's chest. After the incident with the cherub, the wolf had wanted the dancing demon to sleep with him. Needless to say, the two lovers had gone from kisses to something else. The little black and white Toon smiled as he watched the sleeping wolf, knowing he was seeing something no one else was seeing. He kissed his lover on the cheek before getting up, knowing that it was likely to surprise them if they stayed longer together. He quickly returns to the room that serves as their bedroom, for him and Pandora. The little devil girl still sleeps so it is noiselessly that he goes to bed and goes back to sleep while waiting to be woken up.

* * *

This morning, Bendy is weird. He is completely smeared and yet he is starving. But what he swallows doesn't stay long in his stomach. Susie Campbell approaches the lightly pale demon.

« Bendy? Are you okay? »

« Yes ... I just have a big stomach ache... well, I think... »

Pandora watches her brother with a small smile. She had already observed this kind of behavior on one of the secretaries who worked at the studio. She wasn't in the studio anymore because of that. As soon as Susie moved away to get Bendy's new animator (a young lady as dreamy as Henry), the little devil girl jumped next to her eldest with a big smile.

« What? » he wonders because the girl had that kind of smile only when she had an idea behind her head (often a stupidity).

« Tell me, you and Boris ... didn't you go to another stage by chance? »

The dancing demon blushes like a tomato, missing strangling with saliva.

« **How is it important to you, first?** » he fumed before sulking.

« Well, it's important to me in the sense that, if that's what I think, you'll soon not be able to hide it. We take... three to four months to come to the world so it may be the same here. »

Bendy looks at her like she's crazy but Pandora keeps smiling.

« Do you remember Katty, Joey's switchboard operator? Do you remember why she left? »

« Pandy, she didn't left! » the dancing demon sighs. « I already told you ! She is on maternity leave! »

Pandora's smile becomes similar to the one on the little SillyVision mascot's cutout. Their model freezes and looks down at his belly.

« Wait, you... you think that... »

« Why not ? I don't see why humans could have babies and not the Toons. »

Bendy puts his hands on his belly and thinks. It's true that the symptoms that he had presented since this morning resemble those of Joey's attendant's pregnancy. She had been more than happy to explain to them how a Human baby was born, but was it possible for a Toon to bear a child in the same way?

« You know what ? » Pandora offers. « You quickly run to see Isa and you ask for a quick check without warning Joey since you have no episode today. Like that, you're fixed, Bendou! »

« She's going to think I'm crazy... » he mumbles.

« Isa? With Henry, it's the one who considers us the most like real living beings! Come on! I want to know if I will become an aunt! As soon as you know, I want to know everything ! »

Bendy laughs, amused by the enthusiasm of his younger sister. As they are alone, he takes the opportunity to go to the office of Isabelle (his new animator) under the « good luck » of his sister.

* * *

Meanwhile, in front of Joey's secret office, Boris is waiting with Alice and her cherub brothers. The little ones are all tight against their big sister who smiles at them sadly. They don't know what the director had planned for them but, as usual, it was going to be horrible.

After a few minutes, the office door opens and their executioner walks towards them. The cherubs huddle behind their eldest while shaking as she glares at the murderer. Without being afraid of the look of the Fallen Angel, he points to one of the cherubs.

« You, come here! » he said, coldly.

The little one seems to be about to cry and Alice is reluctant to let him go but Joey insists. Finally, the little Toon stands in front of the director and raises watery and frightened eyes towards the Human. He looks at him disdainfully and looks at the others.

« You can all leave. And you, go get me Bendy! » he orders.

« **WHAT!?** » Boris horrifies as he gets up. « **Why ?** »

« It doesn't concern you! » Joey moaned. « Go elsewhere if I'm there. And you, » he grunted, shooting the cherub, « go get me Bendy! After, you can leave! »

The little Toon trembles at Joey and starts moving forward ... when the wolf blocks the cherub, furious.

« **No way !** » he growls. « Leave Bendy out of your horrors! **You have enough guinea pigs with us all!** No need for him! »

All are shaking, knowing that Joey hates receiving orders.

The Human fixes Boris coldly.

« I'm the director of this studio. It's **me** who makes the decisions here! »

« But I refuse that you send a cherub look for Bendy! »

« Perfect ! In this case, the cherub can leave. »

The little sigh and Boris restrains himself from seeming too happy when ...

« It's you who will go and get him for me. » he says then.

The wolf freezes and all the other Toons suffocate. All know what united Bendy and Boris and Alice knows perfectly well that Boris will never drive the imp to serve as guinea pig to Joey.

« **No ! You can't ask me that!** » Boris gets indignant.

« Oh yes ! Of course I can! So, all the others, you can leave! But you, Boris, go get me Bendy! And if in **10 minutes** Bendy isn't in front of that door, get ready for the worst experience of your life. »

Boris trembles when he sees the director and the murderous gleam in his eyes. Flirting, Drew turns and locks himself in his office.

* * *

All leave the office, relieved to escape the daily torture, except Boris and Alice. The Fallen Angel turns to the Wolf, worried.

« What are you going to do ? » she asks.

The Wolf is dark. He knows that one way or another, Bendy would learn what Joey has been doing to them for several years while he has always done everything to preserve it. Taking a deep breath, he turns to Alice.

« Take your brothers and go hide yourself in the music department! Put yourself where you want but do not show up! Especially not by Sammy! Come on! »

« And Pandora? »

« She isn't risking anything. She's probably chatting with Susie and Joey wouldn't take the risk of showing his true face to your 'singing teacher'*. So you, go! Go hide yourself! » he orders firmly.

« But ... what about you? »

« I'll do what it takes to protect Bendy. » he answers as he walks away, his step heavy and dark.

Alice trembles, feeling that there is going to be a big problem... but she obeys her eldest and runs to get all her little brothers to hide them in the music department in the basement.

* * *

« Congratulations, Bendy! » Isabelle smiles as she finishes repainting the demon who smile, visibly filling with joy. « This is the first time I see a Toon embryo! I didn't even know that it existed ! »

« We didn't know it either. » Bendy laughs as he gets up, putting his hands on his belly.

He can't believe it. He is pregnant! Boris and he were going to have a baby! Isa had explained to him that he was born hermaphrodite (surely because he was born too early for his body to be totally as the Creators wanted) and that's how he got pregnant.

« I can't wait to tell Boris. » the dancing demon smiled, looking at the young woman.

« Ah! For sure, he'll be happy! » she laughs before darkening. « Joey, though ... »

Bendy shrugs. He knows Joey wouldn't be happy but it's out of the question for this Human to say something. This child would be born and Boris and he would be a real family. Bendy jumps to the floor, determined, and leaves the office saying to Isabelle:

« I must warn Boris! »

The girl looks at him, wiping her hands full of ink and smiling, moved to see this little devil be as happy to become 'mom'.

* * *

Bendy has been looking for Boris for several minutes when he sees the wolf at the end of the corridor.

« **BORIS !** » he calls (leaving a few small, inky hearts flying around him).

The wolf freezes when he sees the chosen of his heart running towards him with a big smile.

« Bendy ... »

« Boris! I have a great news to announce you! »

« Great ... but ... not now, Bendy ... » Boris mumbled, looking all around them, worried.

Bendy freezes, intrigued by Boris's tone.

« Hey ! What is it, Boris? »

« Nothing, Bendy... but you have to trust me, okay? »

« Of course ! Like always ! » the little one smiled.

His eldest and lover smiles and take the dancing demon with him, as far as possible from Joey's office, pondering what he can do to save his Bendy from their crazy director.

* * *

Suddenly, he walks past an old office that was no longer used since its owner, Wally Franks, had resigned by annoyance. He grabs Bendy by the arm and pushes him inside. The surprised devil lands on the armchair.

« Hey, Boris! What's the matter ? »

« Trust me, Bendy! Stay there until I come to get you! Close the door and open to no one, okay? »

Bendy sees that his lover is worried (even if he doesn't understand why).

« Um ... ok ... » he mumbles before smiling. « Boris! I have something to tell you ! »

« Later, Bendy... I love you... » Boris mumbles as he locks the door before moving away.

His little lover is frozen but he obeys and locks the door before settling on the chair. He hums quietly then looks down at his belly smiling before putting a hand on it.

« I can't wait to meet you, little one. » he smiled before making himself comfortable while waiting for Boris to come back for him.

* * *

Boris advances to Joey's secret office, determined. Bendy would stay safe no matter what! Joey wouldn't touch him! When he arrives in front of the cursed place, the director is already there waiting. He looks up at the wolf and looks at his watch with his calm look, almost 'I don't care'.

« I said ten minutes, Boris! »

The wolf advances towards him, restraining himself from growling. The Human (if he still deserves this name) looks for the other Toon.

« Where is Bendy? » he sighs.

« I didn't go to get him! »

« I thought I was clear! » the director gets mad.

« Yes... and I prefer to preserve it from all this! Bendy is the star of our studio and the public loves him because he is natural and innocent. If you have to experiment, do it on me! You will still need him if you don't want to destroy your studio. »

Joey glares at the wolf and then stands up.

« Do you want to play that? Perfect ! As I said, if Bendy isn't here, it will be you who will suffer for him. »

Boris fixes Joey, resigned, and follows the director into the office.

* * *

Upon arriving in the room and as soon as Joey backs away, he is shocked to see the new tool that Joey still paid with the money that the studio was no longer likely to have: a human-sized operating table with restraints says ''Toon proof''. The wolf observes it attentively and notices that ties regulated for a dwarf size were also set there. No doubt! Joey wanted to go after Bendy! The second roles didn't satisfy him anymore. But why? Why did Joey make these experiments as sanitary crazy as dangerous and painful? What was he looking for?

« Lie on it! » the director curtly orders (rather, executioner if you want the opinion of the wolf).

Boris remains hesitant, standing facing this table, imagining the worst. He was afraid... but he knew he was doing it for a noble cause.

« **LIE ON IT, YOU IDIOT!** » Joey rages impatiently and pushes the wolf against the table.

As soon as he was crushed by Joey's push on the table, he felt the coldness of the tool. It was as cold as Joey's soul and heart. He glares at him with a growl before lying on the operating table. He was cold in the back now (literally as metaphorically) while Joey tied him like a boa choking on his prey before swallowing it completely.

* * *

Once his victim is securely fastened, Joey approaches a closet he opens and pulls out a black leather bag as the doctors used to put it next to him and open it. The wolf saw him take out a saw to cut flesh and bones, an immense amount of thinner, gloves and a forceps that was intended for surgical operations. Seeing this, Boris realized that Joey was going to remove a member or even see an organ. He restrains himself from swallowing... but as soon as he sees Joey painting his chest, he panics, guessing that what Joey wanted was his heart! He tries in vain to get rid of his links but there is nothing to do when it is ''Toon proof''.

« Don't move, you idiot! » Joey orders, trying to keep the wolf steady.

But Boris bites his hand as soon as it's within reach. Joey screams in pain and tries to pull his hand out of the wolf's mouth, but the wolf doesn't let go, though Joey's blood begins to flow between his teeth. The director tears his hand out of Boris' mouth, leaving a little flesh that the canine Toon spits out immediately. He was bleeding profusely but he doesn't care. He looks at the Toon.

« If you think that's going to stop me from doing what I've planned for you! » he replies, retrieving a tissue to stop the bleeding.

« What do you want to do, Joey? » the wolf rages.

« What I want to do ? **WHAT I WANT TO DO? ACCESS IMMORTALITY! THIS IS WHAT I WANT TO DO!** » the human screams in response. « Throughout your life, you Toons have qualities that God has denied to man, while we are his first creation! It is us **and only us** who should possess this quality! Immunity! Immortality! The possibility to challenge all contradictions! But I also understood that only certain elites could access it. People like me who dare everything, even the worst sacrifices, to prove my value! »

His bottomless speech frightens Boris.

« You're crazy, Joey! » he sighs, unable to believe that a man can have such a twisted mind.

« Crazy? Me, crazy? No! No, **you** aren't clairvoyant enough! **You aren't elites!** You can't understand how difficult it is to access something through hard work and reflection, no! You are too **stupid!** You are illusions of lives! Your existence should be ephemeral! But you had the nerve to cheat with destiny to be able to possess immortality! ... Yes, that's it! **You are only idiots! Puppets! All at my mercy!** » Joey laughs, insane.

Boris trembles with all his being. Luckily, he protected Bendy from that... but what did Joey imagine? The Toons aren't immortal! It was the love of humans that kept them alive longer than average. Toons only depended on men for their lives and their survival. This was the very vicious circle of their existence! Especially if you work with the kind of person ''that was'' Joey... before going crazy!

« You prevented me from recovering what Bendy had always taken from me when he just had to be an offering to the one who helped me. This dirty devil hides his game! This dirty little thief! » Joey takes the meat saw (panicking Boris) and the thinner. « But the more I think about it ... the more I realized that you were all in the game. All of you have stolen what is right for me! As I start with Bendy or another, it won't change anything that I intend to do. » he said, coming dangerously close to the wolf with a sadistic smile. « And even once immortal, **I would dethrone Good and Evil in my name!** »

And, without warning, he plunges the saw violently into the wolf's chest, making him scream in pain under the violent blow that tears and burns the flesh. Tears began to flow out of Boris' eyes, who couldn't breathe at once... but that doesn't end there! Joey takes the saw in his hand and cuts the rib cage of the wolf who was suffering from his whole being. It would be impossible to describe to you the pain he feels so much it was horrible! Each saw cut him and burned the flesh and bones of his ribs. Boris felt himself dying slowly. Then Joey pulls the saw out of the chest and, with just his hands, he spreads the ribs and opens a gaping hole that reveals the heart of the wolf who hardly knew how to react so much the pain was excruciating!

« Give me back my immortality, you thief! » Joey screams, catching Boris's heart.

And, with a violent gesture, he tears it in any form of lawsuit. The wolf dies in a dull scream, his mouth wide open... then his eyes turn up (and thus behind the orbits) to display two large X. A wriggling hand tries in vain to maintain life in this body but, after a few seconds, it doesn't move. Boris had just die!

* * *

Bendy freezes when he hears Boris scream, like everyone else in the studio. He hesitates a few more moments, trying to calm himself by respecting the instructions of his lover... when he freezes feeling his heart beat differently. Since the beginning of their relationship, his heart and that of Boris beat at the same pace! But there, his heartbeat seemed to break down. Distraught, he leaps from his seat and runs to unlock the door.

« Boris?... » he calls softly.

The studio seems too quiet. A true silence of death! Trembling, the dancing demon goes down the halls in search of his lover, the father of his future baby. He caresses his belly, but when he hears footsteps he runs to hide in the wall. Joey passes with something in his hands but Bendy is unable to see what. As soon as he is far away, the demon goes out of his hiding place and runs in the direction from which the director came. He walks past the room that turns on the ink machine... when he sees massive ink stains on the floor. For the Toon, they are similar to blood stains. His breath becomes short, horrified. Where could all this ink come from?

Trembling, he walks forward, following the stains, feeling his heart panic. He doesn't know what Joey did to Boris but he must find him. He arrives in front of Joey's second desk, wondering why he's never been here.

« Boris? » he calls.

He doesn't receive any answer but his heart seems to tell him that he has to go. He grabs the handle, turns it and pushes the door open in a sinister grinding.

« Boris? You are here? Bo... »

Bendy freezes and puts his hands on his mouth when he sees the inside of the office. His dear Boris is tied to the table, his chest wide open and heartless. Out, heartless, a Toon can't live!

« **BORIS !** » The dancing demon scream, bursting into tears before running to join the corpse.

He jumps on Boris's neck and tries to see if it's possible that the wolf is still alive but nothing. He trembles, leaving big tears running down his cheeks. The chosen one of his heart and father of his child had just died!

« But why ? Who did that to you, Boris? ... » he sobs, squeezing him as hard as he can.

He cries all the tears of his little body for several minutes.

* * *

Suddenly, he hears footsteps. Distraught, he deviates from the body and look to the corridor where Joey reappears. The Human is covered in ink and his shirt is slightly unbuttoned. He stares at Bendy with a neutral look... before smiling in a way that freaks the little demon.

« Bendy! What a joy to see you! » he smiles. « Nice to see you in my humble den! »

« Joey ... but ... that ... **WHAT DO YOU DO IN BORIS !?** » the little demon screams in tears.

« Boris? I just took what he had taken from me. »

« What? ... »

Bendy is disturbed by Joey's eyes. He never saw the human like that. The only one he had seen with such a look was Sammy who thought of himself as a great manitou of music! Distraught, he backs away when the director approaches with a small smile.

« Bendy... you're so innocent... I admit that it has very often irritated me but now I see things differently. I find you pretty attractive. »

The dancing demon refrains from screaming, shocked. Joey found him attractive?

« But you lost your head! » the little one is indignant, trembling with horror and disgust.

« No, I have all my head. I now see things better than anyone. Even better than Boris. I did well to take care of him before anyone else. »

« What? What do you mean by 'the others'? » Bendy horrifies.

« I mean, I intend to recover what the Toons took from me. But you, Bendy, I want you to stay by my side. » Joey smiled advancing towards Bendy as a predator to his prey. « Imagine, you and me ... together... »

Thinking of his baby and refraining from puking at the thought, Bendy manages to slip between Joey's legs and runs out of the office.

« **HELP !** » he yells as he runs away... except that Joey catches him fast.

With a disdainful gesture, the murderous Human throws him into the ink machine room and Bendy rolls to the ground, bumping into the machine. Smiling like a pervert, he approaches and says:

« Don't try to escape, Bendy. This studio is mine and you belong to this studio so, you are mine! »

Joey says that with such a look that Bendy feels like he's taking him as his thing. Trembling, he sticks against the machine by fixing the director of SillyVision.

« I offer you a deal, little envoy of Satan! » the Human proposes while kneeling at his height. « Accept to stay with me, to offer me your heart, and I let you live. So ? What do you say ? »

Bendy feels his heart go crazy and his breath gets shorter and shorter, his body trembles, a violent energy seems to wake up in him and, without him controlling anything, a pentagram of glowing flames appears on the ground, pushing Joey violently. The human fixed, flabbergasted, the pentagram all around Bendy. The Demon shakes without understanding ... when the ink machine starts all at once. A large stream of ink then comes out of the craft and sinks on Bendy, making the pipes creak and the little devil scream.

* * *

Fear and anger invade him... as he begins to absorb the ink all around him. His body doubles or even triples in volume, making him bigger than Joey and extremely wide. The Human observes this metamorphosis, subjugated ... when Bendy's eyes turn red and the 'monster' of several meters begins to roar with rage! A roar worthy of the most cruel Tyrannosaurus! A large black hand rises and falls on Joey but the Man manages to escape him before fleeing. Bendy starts to roar pursuing him, maddening all the humans who see him.

« **Run! Bendy went crazy!** » Joey screams, trying to escape.

The dancing demon who was driven mad by the pain and the desire to protect his baby puts the ink machine in full power, blowing up the pipes. Employees scream and run away as quickly as possible. Pandora is trying to find her brother.

« **BENDY? BENDY, WHERE ARE YOU !? BENDOU !** »

Suddenly she is caught by Isabelle and forced to the outside. Those in the music department are stuck with dripping ink. Alice squeezes her little brothers crying while the ink invades the entire floor. Even the pump that Sammy started isn't enough to stop the flow of ink.

« **Everything is fine !** » he cries, trying to calm them all down. « **Our Lord will save us all!** »

All those on the upper floors run to escape, panicking when they see the monster that has become their little demon. Joey glare at the raging ''Toon'' and orders the ink cut, which is done... but the ink that Bendy has absorbed allows him to fight. While all are fleeing, Joey remains face-to-face with the demon. Bendy tries once again to kill him when a violent pain spreads in his belly. The Human takes advantage of that to escape.

* * *

No sooner is Joey outside than Humans barricade the door to prevent the Toon from coming out and attacking them. But Bendy doesn't care about Humans right now. The pain in his belly seems excruciating. He calms down and becomes the little Toon demon that he is again but the pains don't stop. His body drips with too much ink... when Bendy suddenly feels horribly empty and smells ink between his legs. Distraught, he looks down to see ink lighter than his. He understands what happened.

« Oh no... no no no... » he stifles, placing his hands on his stomach.

Isa had told him to go slowly now if he wanted to keep his baby... but by wanting to protect him from Joey, Bendy had done just the opposite! The child couldn't bear the change of the body that bore him. The little demon has just lost his baby. The only thing left of Boris! Big tears run down his cheeks and his heart seems to break. He almost chokes on his sobs before screaming in pain and despair!

* * *

 _November 1959:_

When Bendy comes out of his thoughts, he is surprised to find that he is crying. Boris had never been informed for the child. What good is it since it would never be born? Sniffing, he wipes his tears before listening to Boris. The wolf had just told what Joey had done and tore his heart out.

« The pain was such that I fainted... and when I opened my eyes, my body was slaughtered and there was ink everywhere. So I looked in the studio and... I found Bendy in tears against the machine and he told me everything. From then on, we found ourselves locked in the studios, until the little ones arrived. » the wolf smiled.

The little dancing demon smiled at Aiden who perched on his head. He remembers the joy he felt seeing Boris 'alive', in his soul with him in the studio, rather than him alone and the happiness he found when the children came to find him out of curiosity to discover who he really was. He suddenly feels a small pair of arms encircling him, trying to comfort him. Lowering his eyes, he sees Casper hugging him, tears in the corner of his eyes. The demon smiles and hugs him cradling and humming.

Eddie mumbles as he finishes writing down everything he has learned. If Joey Drew had gone so crazy as to tear a Toon's heart for Immortality, he might have been linked to ToonTown's attacks.

« Um ... we have a big problem ... » he mumbles, closing his notebook. « If Joey is determined to get Immortality with the hearts of the Toons, he surely has a role in what happened to Pepé and Ortensia. »

« So we can prove that Bendy has nothing to do with it! » Aiden smiled, straightening up on the demon's head.

« It's not so simple, Aiden. » Boris sighs. « Bendy is cataloged as a monster by others. Without proof, they won't believe us. »

The children sigh, annoyed. How to help their friend without any proof of his innocence? How to prove that a monster was only a victim of a monstrous crazy much more dangerous?

* * *

 **And here is chapter 11: D Finally, you have the answer to many questions like "what exactly happened to Bendy?", "What did Joey do to them?", "What will he to do? "**

 **Ah yes! and also ... mention of mpreg! Well yes and I assume!**

 **Ah! The notifications! I forgot them:**

* Nickname Toon given to Humans who gives them their voice.

 **That's it: D see you next time, friends! And don't forget to leave a little comment to leave me your opinion :)**


	13. Chapter 12: Truth must burst!

**Inked in Mystery**

 **Chapter 12 : Truth must burst!**

* * *

 **Chapter rather particular because it was done largely thanks to Foxiso. Without her, I would never have done it!**

 **And this chapter is particular because it is freely inspired by "Esmeralda" of the musical Hunchback of Notre-Dame**

* * *

Several days passed after Halloween and everyone was worried. Fear begins to invade ToonTown, especially since the Inkcombing Heart-Grinding Monster was still rumbling. All those who had tried to stand up to him had lost their hearts. The ''survivors'' were annoyed to see theirs attacked ones like wild game during a hunt. Even Elmer (official hunter of the Looneys) came to hate the role his studios were asking him to have. Many spoke of giving back to this demon: to hunt him as a prey and kill him without any form of trial! Except that this kind of decision couldn't come on their own. It needed the agreement of the Grand Council! Especially the two oldest Toons: Felix and Gertie!

* * *

PointDexter (who served as a secretary to the Grand Council) arrives in the Jurassic jungle. He was sure to find Felix ... or at least Gertie because it's her place of residence. He looks higher then he finally sees the most important people in the assembly in full discussion. He approaches, hearing more of their conversation that (like the others at ToonTown) is on Bendy. He bows to the huge dinosaur while saying:

« Please forgive me ... »

The cat made of ink jerked, his hair straightening on his body and missing falling from his perch. He turns around to stare at PointDexter, who looks at him a little embarrassed. Gertie looks at them without flinching.

« Oh, you idiot, you scared me! I really didn't expect to see you there! » Felix growl, recovering himself.

« Please forgive me but ... it's really panic in town. » the little scientist with an oval head and round glasses says. « We don't know what to do with this monster running the streets. The people are planning to eliminate Bendy and... »

« **No!** » Gertie cut in a loud voice as soon as they heard the word 'eliminate', making the other jump. « I want him to be judged like any other Toon! » she says, showing in her proud she doesn't want this order to be discussed. « I'm sure he must have things to say to us and I want to hear them! »

With that, Felix begins to think... but he thinks Gertie was right! And those little ones who had fled with him and Aiden who contradicted the fact that Bendy was a monster. Often, children saw things that adults don't see, which often makes them the best audience for Toons.

« Poindexter! » he exclaims in a confident voice. « Take note of what I am going to dictate to you, have this letter signed by the others and announce this decision to the whole city! »

And with that, PointDexter takes a pen and a paper in his hammerspace and listens attentively.

* * *

After the dictation of the letter, PointDexter made the trip through all ToonTown to have the document signed by the other important members of the Grand Council.

When Mickey read the document, he sighed loudly. He understood very well the action behind this letter, but it was Bendy! And his close family and many of his friends had been touched by the many attacks... but he had to admit that this affair didn't turn around. Then he signed just beneath Felix's signature and Gertie's huge loan.

The next was Porky. He read the letter and understood the intentions behind it. Being himself someone who believed hard that everyone deserved justice, even the worst of the Wicked, he signed like his other confreres.

The next was Woody Woodpecker who had been one of the first to open the demon hunt in his studio. But as he read the document, he gritted his teeth. How could he agree with that while many Toons were in danger? But as he saw that the others had signed, he added his signature with a sigh. If Gertie and Felix had accepted, there was a reason.

Koko the clown and Betty Boop added theirs after having read and nodded the document. As Inked Toons, they wanted answers! And Gertie was the wisest of them all.

* * *

After this quest for signatures and having gathered everyone on the main square, PointDexter announces:

« By decree of the Great Assembly Toon! We accept all information regarding Bendy The Dancing Demon and the authorization of his arrest. But no killing will be allowed before his judgment that will bring together all the Toons. Signed members of the Toon Grand Assembly: Felix the Cat, Gertie the Dinosaur, Mickey Mouse, Porky Pig, Betty Boop, Koko the Clown and Woody Woodpecker! »

« **WHAT? BUT IT IS FOOLISH!** » a Toon insists.

« **They are serious ? No kill allowed?** » another man rages.

And others began to shout equally the uselessness of this decree. Bendy was dangerous! He must be put out of harm's way by all means, justice or not!

« **If Council members don't take this matter seriously, let's do justice ourselves!** » Sam the Pirate says as he pulls out his pistols.

Everyone encourages him regardless of PointDexter trying to calm the angry crowd. The little red-haired and mustachioed Looney shakes up the little scientist and proclaims loudly:

 _Hunt down the Demon named Bendy!_

 _Don't let him flee!_

 _And vanish in the night!_

 _These are the flames of Evil Bendy!_

 _While he is free_

 _Your torches will burn bright..._

The others acclaim him, agreeing with him, and join him, intoning what becomes their war song.

 _Hunt down the Demon named Bendy!_

 _Don't let him flee!_

 _And vanish in the night!_

Penelope sharpens her claws, determined to get revenge for her Pepé, one of the first victims of the demon.

 _These are the blades for Evil Bendy!_

 _And I promise,_

 _With my hands, he will die!_

While her husband encourages the Toons (mostly because he wants to get their daughter back), Jessica Rabbit sighs. She knows her daughter as much as Roger even if the fear prevented the rabbit from seeing him. If Candice was willing to stay away from her family and face conflicting opinions, it was because she knew what she was doing. So it is noiselessly in this furious crowd that Jessica goes away, suspecting where her daughter may have been hiding.

* * *

Today, the children and the dancing demon help Dolorès to serve the customers, smiling and dancing between the tables under the eyes of the little ones. After another service, the Toon throws the tray across the room, disturbing the owner... but he uses his ink to go from the bottom table to the bar and stops his tool with his tail (balancing on a hand ) before catching him in his free hand. Going back to the place, he puts the object on the bar, near his ''boss''.

« Thanks Bendy. » the Human smiled. « But stop making me such fears. I had enough breaks in 47. »

« I'm doing it! 30 years without dancing, playing, singing, it's a boooooooooring! »

Now free of his time, Bendy is sitting on the bar and watching the room smiling.

* * *

Suddenly, two hands cover his eyes, making him jump. As he struggles to see again, he hears laughs worthy of a little girl and recognizes the culprit.

« Pandora ... » he sighs as he grabs his younger sister's hands. « You know I hate to be surprised. »

The devil girl (since it's really her) giggle and jumps back and chuckles.

« And I love to scare you! »

« You're just a little fool! » Bendy growls, crossing his arms over his chest and raising his nose, sulking.

Boris, sitting a little further, smiled at this scene that was commonplace in the heyday of the SillyVision. Pandora, knowing her brother as nobody (other than Boris), throws himself on the neck of his eldest by making a small beaten dog's head and says:

« Awww, Bendy ... don't be angry, big brother ... please ... »

The Dancing Demon drops his eyes to her and sighs, unable to resist this little face. Realizing that she won again, Pandora smiles and kisses her brother on the cheek before spinning to play with the kids.

* * *

Suddenly, Pepé enters and joins the little Rabbit.

« Candice, there's your mama outside. She knows you're here. »

« Huh? How can she ...? » the girl exclaims.

« Candice. You don't know any humans except me and Eddie. » Dolorès smiles, even though Bendy is worried.

If Candice's mother knew they were there, others could come! The little rabbit girl looks at her friends and leaves the bar, knowing that her mother was the calmest of her parents. Hopefully, she would say nothing to others if they both explained.

* * *

Jessica is waiting calmly, ignoring the whistles of some badly polite humans... when Candice arrives. After so much time without seeing her parents, the girl (although worried about her friend) is too happy to see her mother.

« **Mom !** »

Jessica smiles and kneels to allow her daughter to jump in her arms. The MaroonStudios bimbo smiles as she squeezes her child and kisses her on the cheek before laying her on the floor.

« You'll have to explain to me, miss. I know you don't do something like that without measuring the consequences of your actions. »

« There I had no choice, Mom... the others would have killed Bendy... but as soon as they calmed down, we'll come back and prove to them that Bendy is nice! » the girl smiled.

« Unfortunately, anger only grows in ToonTown, treasure. The Grand Council has promised to try Bendy like any Toon but the others don't agree and want to kill him without any form of trial. »

Candice paled, horrified.

« And Dad? »

« He's scared for you, Candice. He will do anything to protect you even if it means killing someone. »

« But Bendy isn't mean! Wait, you'll see! »

* * *

Without further explanation, the rabgirl returns to the bar and after a few minutes, she comes out with the demon. Seeing the Toon woman, he gets scared and wants to go back inside but Keffan and Aiden (who followed discreetly) push him to Jessica. Seeing the ''monster'' be terrified in front of her, the wife Rabbit smiled.

« So that's the terrible Bendy? He seems as guilty as my Roger in 47. » she said with a little amused air.

« I beg your pardon? » the little Toon stammers.

« My husband was charged with the murder of the former owner of ToonTown in 1947. Of course, all that was wrong! »

The bimbo approaches, forcing Bendy to close his eyes as he fears what she is going to do to him... but she takes him in her arms and looks up and down before plunging her big green eyes into the dark of SillyVision. She doesn't see the monster described by the human Joey. She sees a frightened child there. Tenderized, she drops a kiss on the Toon's white forehead, leaving a beautiful mark of lipstick. Reposing the little demon, she calmly says:

« I'd better go back to ToonTown before we notice my absence. But if you really want to help your friend, kids, I advise you to go find out about the studio where he comes from. You may find something that will convince the other Toons to listen to you and judge him fairly. »

Without another word, Jessica walks away (crossing Henry and Eddie frowning at the sight) and goes back into his car. Pandora and Boris join the small group on the sidewalk and follow the bimbo of the eyes until she disappeared from the street. Henry approaches and, pointing the direction taken by the Toon, he asks:

« What was that ? »

« I think that means we have a new ally to ToonTown! » Keffan smiled.

Candice smiles and nods, puzzling Pandora who is looking at her brother. She then notices the big red mark on his forehead and, not understanding what it is because the only similar marks she has seen are black, she observes Bendy as a caged animal.

« What? » he worries without understanding.

« You got red there! » the girl said, pointing to his forehead.

As Eddie frowns, puzzled that the girl has never seen lipstick, Henry laughs at the innocence of his little devils.

* * *

Meanwhile in his apartment, Joey was struggling to contain his emotions. He didn't hold it anymore! The more he advanced, the better his chances for his plans became.

 _These are the rules of the game I order!_

 _Everything must be granted to the plan!_

 _No pawn in my game will escape!_

Under the observant gaze of Granny and the two small gophers Tosh and Mac* (who sings sadly and worried), the Toons look everywhere!

 _All through the city, at more fevered pitch_

 _Than the Hunt of the Devil..._

Even in the narrow streets, in the fields, the alley of memories and even in the old catacombs! No hiding place could be ignored! The number of sentinels was doubled with each exit and entry of ToonTown because, even if the searches remain empty, Bendy had to remain hidden in ToonTown since its last attack. Hailing Humans and his studio being deserted, he could only be in town.

 _The Toons' number perilously decreased every night that fell in here!_

Tosh adds, nervously drinking the tea that Granny offers him.

The number of Toons bodies found without soul or heart increased dangerously, worrying many Toons and studios. Thinking first of all to eliminate the threat that still weighed on them, the Toons piled up the ''corpses'' on top of each other in the old Acme factory, hoping to make life for some after all that. But although others didn't want to talk about it, many of them may not have survived the heartbreak so violently, perhaps slowly being forgotten. Be that as it may, this massacre made many widows and orphans.

 _Hoping for hope for the future_

 _And finally stop all this torture!_

 _But the days ahead seemed to come to see the worst._ Granny sighs

 _What will become ToonTown?_

With a sad look, the three Looneys sighed at seeing their once beautiful and joyful city be terrorized by fear and become as dark as some human cities where there was little joy.

* * *

Even if they stayed at Dolorès' bar, the children kept up to date with the latest news thanks to Jessica. She had promised to keep the secret on their safe while trying to calm her husband and the parents of the children. SourPuss was like Roger, determined to eliminate Bendy to get his kid back, while Gandy, Heckle and Jeckle were more worried. She decided to test with them first.

But seeing that the situation was only getting worse, the three children decided to follow Jessica's advice and look for more on the SillyVision studio. As for the human version, Henry had been able to retrieve information... but maybe on the Toon side, they would find something else! The only problem is that the information was in the file at Coyote's home. They had no choice!

* * *

While all ToonTown is in turmoil, three small silhouettes run from bushes to bushes to stay hidden. They are Aiden, Keffan and Candice. Although residents of this city, their new alliance with Bendy put them in the middle of the Toons target to find their friend. But there, they had to risk themselves in the city of Toons! They needed the SillyVision folder!

After several minutes of running around the city, they arrive in front of Coyote's house. Being the only one to fly, Aiden opens the window, allowing his friends to slip into the house and go upstairs. When they get to the wide open room, they don't see Coyote but Sam the dog instead, lying on the bed. The latter feels observed and turns his head to see the three small tits that look at him without fear (although Candice seems surprised to see him there). They know that Sam is a nice ''big'' Toon who's pretty cool and non-violent and he's not going to denounce them to their parents like that.

« Oh ! Hmm... wait, don't move! » the sheepdog said, getting up from the bed and revealing beneath his thick fur Wile the Coyote, peacefully asleep and curled up on himself. « Hey Wile, my quail. There are Toons who would like to see you. » the dog said calmly.

But nothing. Coyote is still asleep.

« Hey Wile. Wile! WILE! » Sam calls, waking the Coyote.

He stretches on his four limbs and looks at the dog with a soft, tender air that reminds both boys of their parents.

« Yes? » he asks softly.

« Hmm, yes, you have visitors. » Sam said, pointing to the children.

The Coyote jumps as he straightened up. When he realizes that it's Roger's little one, Gandy's kitten and Heckle and Jeckle's chicks, he's stunned.

* * *

Keffan snorts before straightening himself leaning towards Candice.

« See, Cand '? I told you that he and Road Runner were too easy. » he said, making Aiden laugh.

The little girl glares at him (hating to lose her couple bets)... when they're frozen by Coyote's howl of anger.

« **Here you are, you three? But do you realize how dangerous you are? It's a miracle that you're still alive! Wait a bit for your parents to find you!** »

Furious, the canine leaps up and goes to the entrance to warn the Toons without regard to the cries and supplications of children... when Sam stands, tall and terribly impressive in front of Wile.

« **Sam! Go away !** »

« No. » the dog growls.

« **Go away ! We must warn others!** »

« **No, but do you hear yourself?** It looks like a bounty hunter! Where did the Toon who was looking for the truth go? Where is this Toon that I liked? Where's my cinnamon sweety? » the sheepdog asks, pouting while sticking his muzzle to his companion's.

The children giggle at the ridiculous nickname, reminding Coyote that they are there, which makes him blush violently. He glares at Sam before turning to the little ones who smile innocently.

« Uh yes uh ... well, I mean, what can I do for you, children? » he asks.

« Do you still have the folder about SillyVision? » Aiden asks.

The Looney Toonologist finally understands where the little ones found the address of the studio: by searching his files!

* * *

Sighing, he goes to the living room and climbs on a stool to retrieve the small folder and threw it scornfully on the coffee table.

« Here ! It's not very thick but there's all the Toons need to know about him. » he mutters.

Sam sighs, disappointed in the behavior of his lover, before sitting next to the little ones. Aiden takes the dusty file and opens it. The first cards are official papers, yellowed by time with the address, the names of employees and Toons... but after all these cards, he frowns.

« What's that thing ? » Candice asks, trying to see, intriguing Coyote glancing around.

Keffan pulls out the first paper which happens to be a strange ink-covered score and, on the back, a machine order and several hundred liters of ink. Much, too much for a small studio. Then Candice grabs an old sketch of Bendy... to see a pentagram at the back with an inscription.

« Our portal to become gods ... » she deciphers.

Coyote frowns as Sam bends to retrieve an envelope. Inside, he finds several papers and an audio tape. The two Looneys look at each other, intrigued, then the dog goes for a tape recorder to read the tape. Meanwhile, Wile unfolds the papers. There are many drawings of Bendy with strange inscriptions in a language he doesn't know and then he sees a piece of paper torn off a notebook. He unfolds it and sees a list of key points under the title: the Messiah who will guide us to the Gods. Each point is checked but what intrigues the Looney more than the title, it is the points of the list:

→ cute face

→ small size

→ attractive

→ demonic

→ a lot of ink

Coyote frowns even more, not understanding the interest of this list when he finds a page torn from a book. He begins to read it, including all the points in the list.

« Though terrifying and dark, Satan isn't a demon but the most powerful god that can be found and the only one capable of bringing Immortality. Although harmless and joker, a Toon is unknowingly the holder of some of this power, allowing him to live to oblivion and making him a God. Knowing that Tunmans were able to emerge, it must be possible to extract the energy that makes a Toon live and transmit it to a human, enabling him to become immortal and to rise to the rank of God... »

The rest of the page is filled with pentagrams and alchemical and satanic annotations with a pen notation written at the bottom of the page: only a demonic Toon will be powerful enough to make me immortal.

* * *

Wile finds himself breathless. A Human had set out to discover a way to become Immortal using Toons and mainly Bendy. It seems horrible! And what did this Human have in mind to become Immortal? How did he want to use the Toons for that? And above all... who was this Human? Sam returns with a tape recorder and, without knowing what Wile had discovered, he starts the tape. Boris's voice begins to speak.

 _« Howdy... I don't know who's listening to this message but... I'm Boris the Wolf of SillyVision. This is not a joke but a call for help. The growth of our studio seems to have made Joey crazy. It's been a few weeks since he's been doing weird tests on us, the Toons. It started with injections of water and other products... until he killed one of Alice's little brothers by injecting him thinner. »_

The Toons gasp in horror at hearing that. Joey Drew had been cruel enough or unconscious to inject thinner to a little Toon? Boris's voice trembles and they hear him sniff as if he's crying.

 _« Joey is a monster... I managed to preserve Bendy for the moment but I don't know how long I can protect him. Joey draws pentagrams on the floor and Sammy, the director of the music department, also seems to go crazy... I don't know what's going on but I'm afraid that if Joey gets tired of us, he would attacking the other Toons, that he's going after ToonTown... I've often heard him accused Bendy for the many ink jobs all over the studio when I know it's him. Luckily the others love Bendy and don't scold him because he wouldn't understand... Henry says he wants to leave and take us with him, but I'm afraid Joey will stop him and pick on Bendy. »_

A sound of broken glass sounds and a woman's voice much more mature than that of Pandora sounds.

 _« Boris quickly! That's Joey! »_

 _« Run to hide, Alice! ... Whoever you are, help us! Joey Drew is lying to us! He is dangerous ! He must be stopped for the sake of all the Toons! »_

The tape stops after hearing hateful screams smothered by a door. The children look at each other, horrified. This message from Boris was proof that Joey was a monster! The Wolf had already been to ToonTown. He had left the tape in the envelope with all the evidence and, as the letter came from the SillyVision, it was given to Coyote for his file on the studio. The canine doesn't know what to think.

* * *

Suddenly, loud blows hit the door, making the little ones and the two Looneys jump. Quickly, Wile arranges the file and slips it under a cushion and Sam takes a big blanket in which he locks the children.

« **Hey ! What are you doing, Sam!** » Aiden screams.

« **Let us go out!** » Candice fumbles.

« Shhh! Don't make noises! » The dog whispers, hiding the improvised bag behind his back.

With a nod to Coyote, he makes him understand that he can open. His companion goes quietly to the door where the blows continue insistent.

« Here, there! I'm coming! » Wile said as he arrived before opening.

SourPuss and Roger, followed by Sam the Pirate armed with his pistols, come looking everywhere.

« **Where are they ?** » the moustached Toon rages.

« Where are who? » his dog namesake asks as innocently as possible.

« **Kids, big ditty of dog!** » the nervous guy annoyed before being calmed by Roger.

« Sam, you'll end up giving yourself a heart attack to get angry all the time. » the rabbit said as he pulled out a fan to try to calm the stocky man who become red with nervousness.

« Tweety thinks he saw the children come in here through this open window. » SourPuss says pointing to the living room window.

« Oh? » Coyote intervened, taking a calm look. « Well, we didn't see them. »

« **Don't make a fool with us, Toonologist from my butt!** » The Cowboy gets angry, pointing his guns at the scientific canine. « I'm fooled by the Rabbit but not by you! Now, tell us where are the kids! »

« They aren't here. I didn't see them anyway. » the Looney calmly insists.

Since they see no reason for Wile E. Coyote to lie to them, Roger and SourPuss sigh. They had so much hope of finding their respective child after several days without news, without knowing that the children are there to listen to them without making any noise.

* * *

But as they were leaving, they heard Speedy's happy roar. The mouse seems to angels! He enters the house through the door and shouts, ecstatic:

« **ARRIBA ! IT'S A MIRACLE ! ARRIBA ARRIBA !** »

« What is it, Speedy? » Sam the dog is surprised.

« A true miracle, amicos! Finally, after mucho of such dark days, a huge buena news! »

« What ? » Roger asks, hoping. « They found Bendy and the kids? »

« Oh no, señor Roger... it's a buena news, but not that one, por desgracia. » the mouse sighs, reassuring the little ones.

« So what's going on? » Coyote intervenes.

« Señor Félix and Señora Kitty! **They just have three little gatinos!** » the little Mexican rodent smiles, shocking everyone (Aiden and Keffan are even forced to put their hand on Candice's mouth to keep him from screaming with joy). « It's like a lighthouse in a dark night! It's a new esperanza! »

Everyone smiles, delighted for the young parents. After so many ''deaths'' and misfortunes, a birth could only be a good thing! Especially when it came to Felix's kittens, the first official Toon and the second most important member of the Grand Council! And the joy was even greater when you know that Kitty had lost a litter some time ago. These babies were a new hope for the city as for the couple of cats.

« You'll have to add a chapter to the file on Señor Félix, Coyote amigo! » Speedy smiled.

« I'll do that right now! I will just need the birth certificates and the names of the kittens. »

« Ah, you'll have to see with the nuevo parents! Well, I'm going to leave ! The whole city must know! »

Of a happy ' **ARRIBA!** ', the mouse runs away in the streets to deliver the good news.

« We should go too. » SourPuss smiled.

« Sorry for the inconvenience. » Roger apologizes.

« There is no harm. » Coyote replies, escorting them to the door.

* * *

As soon as the adults are out, the Looney lets himself breathe and rejoins his companion who releases the children.

« It's official, it's a good day! » Aiden smiles.

« You can says it ! » Keffan adds. « A birth and a proof of Bendy's innocence in the same day! »

« We'll have to take the file, Coyote! » Candice concludes.

« No need, I won't destroy it. » the canine smiled. « And you can tell your friend that he has a new ally. »

« Two! » the sheepdog corrects.

The children look at them incredulously, and then, overjoyed, jump on the necks of the two Looneys.

* * *

The more days passed, the more Oswald began to doubt the proclamation of his brother and the other members of the assembly. The victims were only increasing from day to day, almost as in a mass genocide. And the sorrow of knowing his Ortensia ''disappeared'' because of this monster who still rode the streets and who was attacking the innocent, many Forgotten Disney but also known characters. If you had any idea how much he wanted to punish Heckle he held responsible! If he had closed his beak or that of his kid, nothing of all these horrors would have arrived! But could he really blame the bird? If it hadn't been him, it would have been someone else, another child, another Toon even a Human... or it would have been a pure fate of fate and this monster would have come out of his hole without anyone being there for nothing. But was it worth all those losses?

 _All these cries of terror that resonate every night ..._

 _How can I believe that all will be alright?_

The rabbit sighs... when one of his children come to comforts him. Quickly, all the others join them and all of them jump on their necks, initially maddening their father... but he ends up laughing loudly, feeling his many little ones who try to make him smile despite their sorrow.

* * *

Reading the proclamation of the assembly that the two brothers Cuphead and Mugman brought him, Joey is outraged. No killing allowed? What joke!

« **Coward! Loose! Weak! Traitor! Unable to kill!** » he rage.

Then he sees that some Toons don't follow the decree, wanting to protect theirs whatever happens and that makes him smile. He still had a chance.

« At least some will be more than easy to fool! » he chuckles before moving away, seeming to leave ToonTown.

* * *

With the passing days, the Toons were becoming more and more suspicious... but Mugman realized that even though his elder Cuphead was one of the most fervent 'Demon hunters', he had his mind elsewhere. The blue straw 'cup-head' had noticed that his elder was weird every time Bendy was mentioned. He took a moment to remember... but he remembers that they had been created 6 years after the SillyVision disaster. The first time they heard about Bendy was when Cuphead found a reel at Betty Boop's, who, as a board member and Inky Toon like them, had to teach them everything a Toon needed to know. The two cups had taken advantage of his absence to watch the episode and they have love it. Cuphead had even developed feelings for the little dancing demon.

Except that when Betty had discovered it, she had broken the heart of the red straw cup by explaining that the one who had captured his heart by his episodes, his kindness despite his many jokes and his passionate dances was only a demon who become insane for no reason, who had attacked humans. Mugman had been frightened not only by the Humans but by everything that seems to have been sent by the Devil while Cuphead had become a little Toon who made fun of the Devil... that's what motivated him to offer him to play their lives in their episodes. But to speak again of Bendy and to have seen him in real had awakened the first feelings that Cuphead had had for the demon. So even if he proudly participated in the Demon hunts, he hoped to find him before everyone else and to confess his feelings... but especially to understand! Why did this impudent and innocent devil in his episodes do such horrible things?

Mugman sighs as he sees his brother staring at the Bendy plush. After the children had fled, they had searched the different rooms and the red straw cup had found Aiden's secret box. He had hidden it when he saw that it didn't show where the children could be, but he had kept the toy. As much as his brother could be a brave warrior against their enemy and a proud Toon in front of the others, as much (in private and when we talk about Bendy) he could look like one of those teen girls who fall in love with their favorite actor in a movie. Annoyed, he decides to go hunting Bendy alone! He would prove to his brother that he was a great demon hunter!

* * *

The first patrols left for a long time when Mugman walked the streets of ToonTown humming. He was never totally alone in front of a 'villain' so there...

« Come on, come on, don't panic! » he said (especially for himself) as he went on his way. « Just walk straight ahead and you always come somewhere! »

He continues to advance, hesitating to go to the dark streets unlike the patrols or go to the SillyVision. Finally, he lets his feet guide him... when he slides on a puddle of a viscous and thick thing and falls heavily on the ground. Grimacing, he rubs his forehead... to feel that he is putting the thing on his forehead (or the top of his cup). He puts his hand in front of his eyes... and freezes on seeing thick black ink! Horrified, he raises his head and sees a dripping figure black and white.

« Hello, kid! Do you like cartoons? » the creature asks, smiling cruelly.

Mugman screams as he recognizes Bendy and gets up in time to avoid the crooked hand. He shoots him with his energy... but the ink seems to dampen all the blows. So he fled, panicked, and screamed:

« **HELP ME ! HELP !** »

* * *

Having noticed that his brother was absent without warning (something extremely rare at home), Cuphead seeks him in all ToonTown. He first tries the places he loves and where his friends live before looking everywhere.

« **Mugman, it's more funny! Stop your boyish whims! To hang out alone in the streets facing a monster, it won't change you! You will always stay my little brother! Come on! Stop sulking and come!** » he calls loud enough for his younger brother to hear.

This isn't the first time that Mugman was doing this to him so there is no reason for it to change. Smiling, he's looking for his brother when...

« **HELP !** »

Cuphead jumps when he hears his brother's screams... when he sees him running away, followed by the Demon that everyone is looking for! His heart misses a beat and he runs to try to join them to save his younger brother.

* * *

The blue straw cup runs and zigzags through the streets, hoping to escape Bendy. It is that he runs quickly, this animal!

« And to say that Cuphead is madly in love with this thing! » he thinks before turning.

He passes through an alley and cuts through another before the Demon sees him. He freezes and wait for the Inked Monster to pass before sighing and turning around to return home to his brother.

« **Mugman!** »

The person turns to see his eldest at the end of the street. Relieved to see Cuphead, he walks over to him happily... when he starts screaming:

« **MUGMAN ! BEHIND YOU !** »

But too late! The youngest of the siblings feels something that pierces him through the back. He finds himself breathless and, turning his head, he sees ''Bendy'' who smiles at him cruelly. With a quick gesture, the ink demon tears the heart of the little cup-headed Toon. Mugman finds himself frozen in pain before collapsing on the ground, his straw falling from his cup to roll in the dust. Cuphead is frozen, horrified, seeing his little brother being killed before his eyes. The shock is such that for a moment he doesn't move, trembles with horror and tears of sadness run down his cheeks. As soon as ''Bendy'' is far away, he returns to his senses, finally feeling his heart squeezing tightly in his chest.

« **MUGMAN !** » he shouted, in tears as he ran, hugging his brother's corpse in his arms.

The hunters come too late, as usual, and find the two brothers. Cuphead sobs in an uncontrollable way, royally ignoring others around him. Daffy (who has been a hunter since the beginning and despite the decree and Bugs who agreed with this decree) patted his shoulder sadly.

« Sorry... »

Cuphead didn't answer, clutching the corpse of his younger brother. How could it be possible? This monster hides his game! Betty was right. She had been right from the beginning! There was no soul in this being made of dread and ink who was attacking the city today. But he swears to himself that he will pay! Oh yeah ! The demon would pay for his crimes! And if it wasn't the assembly that would avenge his brother then he will avenge him with his own hands!

« **BENDY ! IF YOU HEAR ME, I SWEAR YOU! I WILL KILL YOU, BENDY! I WILL KILL YOU!** »

Let him run as long as he can still, ''Bendy''! But he knows now that they will repaint his tomb of diluted ink! This creature should return to the devil who created it! And never come back from the abyss!

* * *

At the bar of Dolorès, Bendy is wiping glasses with the boss. Eddie and Henry watch this with a small, tender smile.

« He's a real kid, that Toon. » the detective sneers. « To wonder if it's a real demon. »

The animator shrugs. Bendy was always like that and will always be.

Suddenly, Pepé floats in and starts ringing the bell that Dolorès has put on a shelf. Since the arrival of the Demon, the bar served as an asylum for Bendy but also for souls until they find a solution. This bell served to warn the arrival of a new soul and therefore a new attack! As nobody suspected him in ToonTown and being a ghost himself, Casper was the one who found the souls and guided them to the bar. Customers had become used to seeing these ghostly and transparent Toons wandering in the bar even if they didn't understand what was happening in ToonTown so that many Toons lose their hearts while they were sometimes still very well known.

All the souls gather in the bar to welcome the last victim and to calm him because the Demon seemed to become more and more violent and cruel with his 'prey'. Bendy remains hidden near Dolorès, knowing that he could distract the newcomer who thought he had been killed by him. Casper then enters holding the hand of the new... and all are shocked by recognizing him.

« Mugman? » Eddie exclaims.

He expected everything and any Toon but not one of those two! It's not that they weren't known but they didn't have the same popularity as Bugs or Mickey or even Felix or Oswald! The culprit seem ready to attack any Toon: known or secondary.

* * *

Mugman (whose trace of his heart is still visible on his chest) is stunned to see all the victims of the Demon before him! They are all there, in the form of souls! Smiling, he runs to throw himself to the necks of his friends (his arms being too small, he is content to hug Pepé, Ortensia and Fauntleroy Fox).

« **You are here ! You are all here! It means that there is still hope!** » he cries, delighted that he isn't really dead.

« Of course there is hope! » Candice exclaims, jumping close to him. « What do you think we've been doing for weeks? We are looking for a solution! »

The little blue straw cup froze when she saw the little girl. He sees Keffan and Aiden a little further.

« You three ? Are you still alive? »

« Why would we be dead? » Aiden asks. « There was no risk. »

Mugman frowns... when he recognizes the wolf that protected Bendy at the Halloween party. Distraught, he recoiled... when Pandora (perched on one of the chandeliers) hangs by the tail, head down.

« **Hi, handsome!** » she chirps.

Mugman screams as he sees this Bendy-like face (though he's more feminine) and runs off into the soul crowd... when he sees his murderer. He turns pale and then, overcome by fear, he screams:

« **ENOUGH ! WHAT HAPPENS HERE ! Why are you all here with your murderer? Are you crazy or what?** »

All froze, astonished by howling loud enough for this little man usually so quiet. Even the little Pierre from Disney is afraid and yet he has already faced a Fierce Wolf! All look at each other and Chilly Willy approaches.

« It's a bit more complicated than that. » he said. « Many believe that Bendy is guilty ... but that's not the case. »

« Oh no! » Pepé exclaims. « Bendy is everything but not a murderer! »

José Carioca, Pete Puma and Dimwit shake their heads.

« I would rather say a victim! » Ichabod Crane intervenes, under a positive nod of the other three.

« Victim of the madness of a man! » one of the Gremlins exclaims. « A dirty man! And Bendy has always been there with us during the various attacks! »

« He was with you celebrating Halloween when the first attack on me, the Gremlins and Pepé took place. » Ortensia calmly explains as she joins the 'new kid' to calm him down.

« The real culprit, he's still roaming around in ToonTown! » the dwarf Happy rage.

Though he was always smiling, he hated injustice and could get very angry.

Mugman is disturbed... but he sees that Bendy looks more like a scared little child than a real monster. Especially since all the children (souls and 'alive') run to join him to hold him in their arms. He frowns, incredulous.

« I don't understand anything anymore... »

« The real culprit is Joey Drew! » Eddie says approaching.

« The Human? It's not possible… »

« Joey Drew isn't what we believe. » Henry sighs as he comes to pick up Pandora, taking her off the chandelier. « He did a lot of harm to the SillyVision Toons. »

« Oh yes... » Boris mumbled, drawing attention to him. « I am his first victim and the cause of the SillyVision disaster. »

« One of the causes... » Bendy mumbles as tears come back into his eyes.

Mugman and Ortensia notice that he is trembling and putting his hand on his belly. The cat is frozen on the spot, understanding that there was more than the loss of the chosen of his heart... but she decides to wait to talk with the person concerned. The little cup-head, him, sees well the little demon of the rare episodes that he could see. He hesitates, his reason fighting with his heart who wants to believe it.

* * *

Suddenly, the phone rings. Candice picks up and drops to the ground, stretching the wire to the maximum.

« Yes? ... Ah! Uncle Eddie! Mr Coyote! »

As Valiant goes to Candice to pick up the phone, Mugman gets indignant.

« Coyote knows? »

« We have found evidence that Joey is crazy! » Aiden says.

The blue straw cup frowns before listening to what's going on.

« Yeah, Coyote?... Yes, Mugman just arrived. ... Ah! I see ... and Joey came back to ToonTown? ... Oh! Outch... it gets complicated ... We'll see on our side. Thank you for having warned. »

« What is happening ? » Dolorès asks as Bendy is joined by Pandora and Henry.

« With what happened to Mugman, his brother Cuphead embarked on a personal war against Bendy. » the detective replies, hanging up. « So now he'll be patrolling, and if he ever gets caught, he'll execute Bendy without any form of trial. The list of supporters for immediate killing is growing. »

Mugman suffocates, unable to believe that his brother may have had such a change. Especially when you know his love for Bendy. Candice suddenly gets upset.

« **But it's impossible! What must be done so that they understand that Bendy is not dangerous?** »

« They need proof. » Casper sighs. « It's like with Doom. Without clear evidence, no one would have known it was a Toon. »

All sigh. Coyote had some evidence in his files, there was testimony from Henry and other humans but would that be enough? Aiden thinks, arms crossed ... then, without anyone noticing, he gets out of the bar, an idea anchored in his little fledgling head.

* * *

It was a risky plan but he had to try! That's what Aiden put in his head after Coyote, his lover, and Jessica became allies: he went fishing for evidence so he could show them to the members of the Assembly. To them and them alone! Because if he spoke to the Toons directly, Joey would risk intervening with one of his follies that everyone swallowed. He had thought to go directly to the important members and tell them everything... but he had no proof except words but the sayings aren't reliable! In any case, according to Eddie, that wouldn't be enough. The hardest thing was to act in the shadows, without being seen by anyone, or even by his parents... but it was hard enough for him. They hadn't seen them for a long time and they missed him... but he is afraid that his parents will make everything fail! But he promises himself that at the end of it all, he would return with them if they forgive him.

 _Good people of ToonTown,_

 _I've heard the calling of the Lord!_

 _The time has come to take your city back!_

He hears this suddenly. He knows that this voice belonged to Joey and he sees him fooling a crowd that did not follow the decree. Without being seen, he approaches where the crowd accumulates.

 _We'll save our ToonTown!_

 _Expunge this heathen Demon Horde_

 _Before we're overrun, we must attack!_

Aiden is disgusted by his words.

« **You're the demon one, liar!** » he indignantly exclaims aloud (still hidden in the crowd).

This surprised everyone, even Joey who looks everywhere after the one who just dropped it.

« **Who said that?** » he asks.

The Toons are staring at each other but no one knew who had let go of those words so he tries to catch up.

« That's right, I created Bendy! But it's not my fault if he attacks innocents today! »

« **Liar! Even mirrors don't hide your true face anymore!** » Aiden screams, staying hidden and changing places.

The Toons look again around them but nothing! Joey tries to find this trouble maker but to no avail.

« **What will I lie? What do you know about me?** » the furious human asks in front of the crowd.

« **I know everything, Joey!** You dared the worst sacrifices for your quest for Immortality! And I'm not the only one! I wouldn't be alone in knowing the truth! **And you know that God whom you denied and also the one who helped you know it!** So, if you plan to save the little soul that you think you have left Joey, **stop lying!** » Aiden's voice says (still hidden).

It offends Joey who didn't know what to do in front of the crowd in front of him. Some Toons wondered what and then began to stare at the human who became nervous to them.

* * *

« **But what are you doing here !?** » Heckle's voice said.

All turn to see the magpie with his husband. The couple of TerryToons (as well as others who believed in justice) followed the decree to the letter. It shocked more than one as their son was one of Bendy's corrupt prisoners... but these gatherings had the gift of annoying the black-feathered bird.

« **With your nonsense, you lose more time chatting than anything else! You increase the number of victims every minute!** So be helpful and find evidence that explains the demon's behavior! » he is indignant, staring at the right Human in the eyes. « By understanding better what he wants, we will have more chance to put an end to this ordeal! »

Aiden is surprised by this! Did his father really think that Bendy should be judging right? The chick wonders if he is facing the magpie who gave him half of his genes. Joey glares at him, still hating as much when his decisions are challenged.

« **Because you think you do better?** After you've judged him, who says he's not going again? » the human proclaims under the clamours of the other Toons who followed him. « All you want is to recover your corrupt kid! But you know like me that the only thing to do to free the kids who serve as pawns is to eliminate it! » Joey retorts further.

Heckle shakes his head, disgusted.

« Humans are all the same! » he spits, looking at the Man in the eyes.

* * *

Aiden makes the mistake of leaving his hiding place to watch the argument between his parents and the infamous SillyVision director. He manages to remain unnoticed by others thanks to his small size... until he feels a pair of plucked hands catch him by the waist and lift him off the ground! This is Foghorn Leghorn, this big talker and 'old chicken'!

« I say, here's one of the kids! » he said, waving Aiden in the air. « He was able to get rid of the filthy demon! »

Everyone turns to see the chick shown by the Looney chicken. Joey's staring at the boy, because he's certainly the little voice that has stumbled on his past... but that kid could be an opportunity to know where Bendy was. But how to kidnap him without being seen in front of all these Toons?

Heckle and Jeckle rejoice and are happy to see their child alive and in perfect health.

« Aiden! » Jeckle said in tears, rushing to grab his son in his arms, cuddling and cradling him tenderly.

Everyone (except Joey) is happy about that. If the first child to find Bendy was still alive, there was a good chance the others were still alive. Aiden returns the affection and hug his mother as strong as he can with his little wings. His embraces had been terribly missed even though he had refused to admit it to others. Then he stops, moving his head away from his mother's chest to face him.

« Mum ? Is it true that you will bring Bendy to the Grand Council? » he smiled hoping that what he heard from his father wasn't a dream. « Because I have proof that can explain almost everything! » he says, annoying Joey more and intriguing the other Toons.

« Aww, my chick. Although we are afraid, of course we will bring him to justice! » Jeckle smiled, hugging his son further.

Aiden looks at his father during the embrace of his mother and he nods to confirm the words of her husband. The child smiles, eyes shining with tears, and whispers: ''Thank you...''. Heckle shrugs. He was a stubborn, but he needed answers.

* * *

Joey approaches the pair of magpies, glaring at the child. The little chick freezes on seeing him and closes against his mother, alarming his parents who turn to the Human. The look of the 'Chief' of Bendy's Hunters' patrol freeze their paint while their son looks at him, disgusted and furious.

« Tell us where is Bendy, rascal? » Joey growls.

« **Aiden isn't a rascal!** » Heckle gets upset, placing himself between his husband and son.

This guy inspired him less and less confidence.

« He knows where the Demon is hiding! **Confess!** »

The child leaves the arms of his mother before throwing himself on the shoulders of his father to be high and, to the shock of all, spits on the face of the Human.

« **You can dream, killer!** » the chick raged.

Joey wipes his face angrily and the magpies move as far as possible from the Toons group. Many are intrigued by the adult behavior of TerryToons but more than half think it is their heart of parents who refuse to admit that their little one could have done something serious. Especially since they had just found him alive after several weeks to fear the worst for him.

« Do you want to play it like that? **So let's play it the hard way!** » the former director gets angry.

Seeing he's going after his family, Heckle jumps on Joey, pulling a hammer from his hammerspace ... but the Human is very agile for his age. With a bound, he avoids Heckle and pulls the hammer from his hands. With a disdainful gesture, he picks up the magpie and throws him at the feet of his husband.

« **You see ! Traitors in Bendy's pay! Let's stop them and force them to tell us where the demon is!** » the Human order with a tone worthy of a priest of the Inquisition.

Heckle and Jeckle move away when the Toons determined to kill Bendy approach, determined to imprison them... when an explosion of blue smoke gushes into the air. All start and move apart when a silhouette comes out of the smoke. All are shocked to see a female Toon devil who look like Bendy in a pretty purple dress with a mauve headband and her beautiful white rose torn off on it. Joey ticks, recognizing her, and Aiden smiles, overjoyed.

« **Pandora!** »

The devil girl stands up smiling, making others tremble at the sight of that smile like Bendy's. The little girl laughs like a child and makes a pretty bow.

« **My apologies, your Highness Drew! But we can't stay!** » she laughs.

With a snap of her hand, she shows a thick blue smoke around her and the Toons magpies. The others try to stop her... but when they cross the smoke, they find nothing! The devil girl and the three magpies have evaporated!

* * *

Joey stands straight but his body trembles with rage and his face ticks under the nervousness. If Pandora, being the last of the studios, the spare wheel in case he couldn't count on Bendy, had the magic to do that, then that meant he was right! Bendy was undoubtedly very powerful and could offer him what he wanted! No doubt: he had to find the dancing demon! Turning to the crowd, he takes his air as a great manitou and declares, continuing to stir the embers of hatred:

« **Toons! We have proof that Bendy is alive and that he manages to corrupt many of us despite his numerous crimes! It is urgent to find him and end his reign!** »

The others look at each other and shake their heads. They had enough! Bendy had to be defeated now!

 _Hunt down the Demon named Bendy!_

 _Don't let him live_

 _And let's do what is right!_

 _We'll find the Demon named Bendy!_

 _We'll find him_

 _And kill him tonight!_

* * *

Heckle and Jeckle freeze when they see that they are in the bar of Mr Valiant's wife but that there are not only humans. There are also Toons and not just any Toons: all the Toons who have been killed!

For a moment, they wonder if they are dead too... but unlike the others except the children, all are souls. They thought they had seen the most disturbing... except that their hearts missed a beat when they saw Bendy. But seeing their eyes, the dancing demon freezes and hides behind the legs of a human guy, like a child act with someone who scares him. It surprises them even more.

« It's okay ? » the imp girl asks, startling them. « This is the first time I try this with people. »

« How did you do that, Pandora? » Aiden asks.

« Hey! Even a female imp has powers! »

The girl makes two blue energy orbs appear in her hands while smiling. Henry (the Human behind which Bendy is hiding) caresses the head of the elder of the demons then explains:

« After the SillyVision disaster, when Pandora came home, we discovered she had magical powers. Surely one of Joey's experiences. »

« It's thanks to that that we were able to see that Joey wanted something bad. » Eddie adds.

« What about you, Bendy? » Aiden asks, the others having been briefed earlier.

« Maybe... » he mumbles, hugging his creator. « Surely that's how I manage to create these fiery pentagrams and trigger disaster. »

« You didn't know they existed, Bendy. » Ortensia smiled. « It's normal that you don't control them yet. »

* * *

The Dancing Demon smiles and, while the others explain the situation to the two talking magpies, Oswald's wife takes the boy away. As soon as she is sure that no one will hear, she questions him.

« Bendy? It's not only Boris you lost in the SillyVision disaster, isn't it? »

Bendy freezes and tears bead in her eyes.

« What…. ? »

« I'm a mother, Bendy. 420 little bunnies that I have to take care of every day. » she smiled sadly, worrying about her children knowing the character of her husband. « There was a child in this tragedy, wasn't it? »

The tears finally run down the cheeks of the dancing demon who squeezes his stomach, shaking his head.

« I had just discovered it... » he explains.

« Boris knows? »

« No... When Joey tried to touch me, I thought about protecting it, but... I did the opposite ... it didn't resist... »

« I'm sorry, Bendy... I know what it's like to lose everything because of a human. The greed of our former studio director, Charles Mintz, plunged us into hell until we were forgotten by all. If we hadn't been created by Walt Disney who drew us with Love and Care, we would have already gone. »

Bendy looks at her, intrigued by the resemblance of their respective stories, before crying. At least she still had her husband and 420 cubs. Ortensia understands and tenderly hug the little Toon with a broken heart in her arms.

« Everything will be fine, Bendy. We will save all hearts, even that of Boris, and everything will return to order. And, with a little luck,... you can try again to have a baby. I know it will never replace the one you lost but don't forget that you have the right to happiness. »

The little one smiles holding her in his arms even if, for the moment, all that seems impossible to him.

* * *

Suddenly, Coyote calls the bar and warns Eddie of a new change to ToonTown. Sighing, the detective hangs up and turns to his friends.

« It's getting worse and worse. » he sighs.

« What? » Henry wonders.

« Joey managed to convince the Toons that Heckle and Jeckle were corrupted by Bendy through their little one. Now, ToonTown is a real time bomb that can explode at any time. »

Aiden sighs as he hears what Eddie says. Joey was even worse than any villain he could meet in his young life.

 _He sows Hate and Chaos_

 _Wherever he can go!_

 _How can we help our friend_

 _Against our own world?_

The chick passes his hand through the feathers of his head and starts pacing in front of Bendy and the others, mumbling and thinking aloud.

 _What can we do for our friend Bendy?_

 _When everyone try to take off his head?_

 _This case is dangerous for Bendy_

 _Will we survived? Or being left for dead?_

Bendy sighs and wipes his eyes before the tears overflow. He has enough!

 _Out there, everyone hate me…._

Aiden runs to hug his friend even if he asks himself the same question.

 _Everyone hate him..._

The imp hug him in his arms before being joined by all the others, seeking the comfort of the children. The adults are all saddened to see this little Toon in tears. And to say that they thought he was a monster...

 _What can I do?_

* * *

At ToonTown, the Toons are now determined to hunt down the demon named Bendy and destroy him! No matter what the Great Council would say, they couldn't stand being the monster's prey anymore! Some were still hesitant, preferring to follow the Grand Council and the Sages... but the vast majority wanted to solve the problem at all costs! War songs resound throughout the city!

 _Where is the demon called Bendy?_

 _The flames grow tall_

 _And full of hate for him!_

 _All ToonTown burns for find Bendy!_

 _And still it all_

 _Now, it is him or me!_

Joey passes between the Toons, playing the Humain outraged or sorry while in the depths of him, he loves what happens. The more Bendy is hated, the greater his influence on the Toons and the more he can manipulate them like puppets and get what he wants.

 _The devil dwells deep inside Bendy!_ he sings loudly to convince his 'disciples'.

The Toons find it odd that this Human is on their side and behaves like one of them ... but still he is right! Bendy was the personification of the Devil himself! There is no other choice!

 _These are the flames of ToonTown!_

 _The night is singing_

 _Our hate for Bendy!_

Under the clamor of the crowd, the Demon hunt is resuming even more, but at this moment, ToonTown no longer resembles of Paradise on Earth... but a real battlefield where the war could resume at any time! The studios were even afraid to approach the Toon City in the middle of a crisis and many were asking Eddie for explanations, but the detective is silent. It was necessary to wait to have all the parts so that the truth could burst!

* * *

 **Here! Chapter 12 posted! Big thanks to Foxiso for her help inspired by this song from the musical "Hunchback of Notre-Dame"**

 **So ... officially the LONGEST chapter I've ever written for this fiction! which was written very quickly thanks to Foxiso.**

 **Ah! Notifications rated ***

*Mac and Tosh are the two small gophers of Looneys, also known as Goofy Gophers, enemies of Daffy, personally I discovered them in a ''Tweety and Sylvester'' cartoon

 **And don't forget the little comments :D**


	14. Chapter 13: Rescue and Revelations

**Inked in Mystery**

 **Chapter 13 : Rescue and Revelations**

Bendy finds himself unable to believe that all these people would help him: Jessica, Heckle and Jeckle, Casper the adorable ghost, Wile E. Coyote and Sam the Sheepdog, Pepé, Ortensia and the Gremlins who will serve as constant guards for the building and the souls of the Toons attacked by this creature. The skunk supposed that it was a Missed One* driven mad by a rejection, and that Joey may have surrounded it, but his memories were very fuzzy like those of the other Toons even though everyone remembers that it was vaguely the same head as Bendy. Henry and Eddie were going to investigate this strange creature and watch over Joey, who seemed really weird... especially because a man who doesn't cope well with his own Toons doesn't spend hours in ToonTown mounting the whole population against an innocent devil posing as the worst monster!

Meanwhile, in ToonTown, the situation is still tense especially since Heckle and Jeckle had disappeared with this devil girl and the accusations of their chick Aiden face to the Human Joey Drew. Many wondered, but the flames of Hate began to consume the hearts of Toons still alive.

* * *

Today, while Eddie and Henry are chatting, looking for ways to help Bendy... when they hear a car horn and squeal near them. Turning around, they see Benny, the cab Toon, and Roger Rabbit, Candice's father. The rabbit looks furious.

« **Eddie Valiant!** » he roared.

The detective sighs as he sees the rabbit get out of the cab and turns to Henry.

« Go back to the bar, Henry. I join you after. And... warn you know who. » he said before turning back to the rabbit, leaving the former animator to leave. « Hi Roger. »

« **Don't play nice with me!** » the Toon raged, joining the human. « **Now, we're going to talk seriously, from Man to Man!** ... uh ... or from Rabbit to Man ... **Anyway! From human to Toon! Face to face !** »

Eddie looks seriously at Roger even though little Toon is more comical and ridiculous than terrifying.

« Okay! What do you want to talk about ? »

« **About Candice!** » Roger shouted. « **Where is she !?** »

« Your kid? I haven't seen it since Halloween. » Eddie said as he was about to leave... when the rabbit crashed in front of him, annoyed.

« **I'm not kidding, Eddie! Tell me where is my daughter!** »

« I don't know, Roger. And, tell me, why do you think she left? »

« She was surrounded by this demon of Bendy, of course! My poor little princess is so nice... » the star of the Maroons suddenly cries. « That monster had to turn her brain back... »

« Oh? I would say rather that your girl, she just needs to breathe! It even surprises me that she didn't escape before! » the annoyed Human answers as he returns to his wife's bar.

Roger is frozen for a few seconds before running after his friend Human.

« Hey ! No, but what does that mean? » the rabbit is indignant.

« What you want. » Eddie mumbles as he pulls out a notebook to make a point on his notes.

« Eddie! She's my daughter! »

« Oh, I know it! You can believe me ! » the Human gets annoyed as he turns to the rabbit who catches him. « From the moment she was in your arms, you never let her go, your little princess! If you could lock her under a glass globe, you'd do it! Your girl, you're choking on her, Roger! It's not by smoldering her all the time and playing Daddy Hen that you will help her! You know what ? I wonder how she did to hold on for so long without getting out of the running. »

Eddie blames himself for being so hard on the rabbit, but maybe that would make Roger think. The rabbit remains frozen on the spot, horrified. His heart sinks at the thought that his daughter has fled from her own will and that she is tired of seeing him, that she doesn't want his fatherly love anymore.

* * *

When Eddie returns to the bar, Candice runs to join him.

« Did you see Dad? » she asks, her eyes shining with tears.

« Yeah. He is really worried about you. »

The rabgirl sighs and goes to sit in a corner, nervously swinging her feet. Bendy joins her and puts his hand on the little girl's shoulder... and she pokes at his neck crying. Candice blamed herself for hurting her father, especially since he was very sensitive.

« Hush, hush... » Bendy whispers, cradling her. « I'm sorry, Candice... it's all my fault... »

« Bendy, stop! » Pandora gets upset by forcing her brother to look at her right in the eyes. « You are for nothing, capiche! It's Joey the culprit! **That must stay well in your brain !** »

Despite the little one in tears in the arms of his eldest, the dancing devil glares at him. She was tired of Bendy putting himself down when he was the victim! Furious, she sit on a stool and shows a bubble in her hand to see what happens in the city of Toons. With magical powers, she discovered a spell that allowed her to find everything she wanted and make it appear in a bubble filled with smoke. As everyone starts to gather around the girl to see (even Candice), Bendy is suddenly pulled aside by Heckle, Jeckle and Aiden.

* * *

In ToonTown, everything is quiet for now. The patrols are in full circle while Tom the Cat and Baby Herman advance in the street, annoyed.

« It's been weeks that we're looking for that damn Demon and no track on where he could hide! Even worse, he continues to steal hearts and kill Toons! » the Cat chafers, thrusting his hands into the pockets of his hammerspace as his hands are thrust into his pockets.

« You can talk ! It's just because leaders don't take the right steps! » the baby growls, pulling a big puff from his cigar. « Me, if I found myself facing this damn demon, I would stick my baby's fist in the face... with maybe some stinky diapers! And after, a good blow diluents and we don't talk about it anymore. »

« If it was so simple. And it's so sad for the Toons to whom he stole their hearts. Penelope from Looneys for example, she is totally devastated by the loss of her companion, Pepé. »

« Well... If she loved him as much as Roger loves his Jessica, it doesn't surprise me. » the MaroonStudio baby mumbles, spitting smoke from his cigar.

« Besides, he found his little girl? »

« Candice? No, she stays hidden. But if Roger falls in front of Bendy and his princess is here, I can tell you: it will be a massacre! Keffan and Aiden are always hidden with the two magpies. Two great traitors if you want my opinion! »

During their conversation, the two Toons sank into a darker street... and a dark drop suddenly falls from the sky, falling right between them and cutting short the discussion. They look at the task... which happens to be black ink! Intrigued, they look at each other (an underlying fear in their eyes) and then raise their heads. A huge black dripping mass stands above them and, straightening its head, it reveals a white face with a huge sadistic smile and an evil head deformed by dripping ink. An ink monster they recognize as Bendy!

Tom and Baby Herman can't help but scream in terror (their eyes come out of their sockets) and they run away as fast as their legs allow. The mass of ink drops heavily on the ground and chases after them. Tom ends up giving up the two-legged position for the four-legged one that (as a cat) allows him to go faster while Herman tries to run as fast as he can.

« **Damn kid's body with his fucking little short legs!** » the baby rattles, suddenly taking a turn with Tom, hoping to sow the demon.

Inky Bendy skips, scaring some Toons who come out of their homes (intrigued by the noise) before going home full speed screaming to escape the monster. Baby Herman and Thomas's mad screams and cries come to Roger's ears as he returns sadly to ToonTown, leaving Benny to drive calmly.

« What is that ? » he fumbles.

Benny doesn't waste a second and rolls towards the hustle and bustle.

* * *

The other Toons are hiding in order to avoid attracting the demon and being the next to lose his heart ... but ''luckily'' he seems more interested by the baby and the cat. A tight turn allows them to get a little ahead (especially for Tom) but the blue-gray cat is so preoccupied by what is chasing him that he doesn't look ahead and gets stuck in a fence, right in front of his mate Jerry who jumps.

« Hey ! But what's happening to you, Tom? » he worries as he approaches.

« Hey ! You train for a gag? » Roger asks as he comes out of the taxi ahead of them, Tom struggling to get out of the snare trap ... when Baby Herman leaps over the obstacle, panicking.

« **Run away, Roger! He's trying to eat us!** » the baby Toon exclaims, moving away as fast as his little legs can.

« Huh? Who is 'he'? » the bunny asks, looking down the street.

The Inked Monster suddenly appears in the street sneering diabolically, maddening the little mouse, the cat who sees himself already caught and the rabbit in red overalls.

« **BENDY !** » he screams as he starts to run away (just like Benny, who immediately run away with a screeching honk) ... when he turns to see Jerry trying to unblock his episode mate.

His kindness gets the upper hand so he goes back and catches the cat's arms while the little brown rodent jumps on the feline's back trying to make him thinner.

« You see what it's like to eat fish sticks at every meal! » the little animal groans by pulling on the skin of his friend's back to make him lose weight in vain.

Baby Herman comes back and catches the cat's arms while his long-eared friend leaps to the other side of the fence to push Tom to the right side... but that's the demon coming at them with a sneer. The four Toons scream, seeing himself already dead... when Penelope jumped on the fence and scratched the Demon in the face. He recoils at the stroke of his paw before standing up grunting, ink flowing scratches.

« **Come ! Approach, Demon!** » the black and white cat screams before jumping on the roof.

She starts running over the rooftops and returns to the ground behind the monster. This one seems to glare at her (even if his eyes are invisible) before turning completely to pursue her, sending ink in the face of his first victims in his sudden movement. Roger panics and begins to spit the ink to prevent it from entering his mouth and wiping his face before shouting:

« **Hold on, Penelope! We'll help you right away!** »

« **Get me out of there first !** » Tom groans, struggling furiously.

* * *

Meanwhile, in the bar of Dolorès, the small group carefully observes the scene in the blue bubble of smoke created by Pandora. After Keffan, who had wanted to see his parents, Candice had wanted to see her dad (her mother knew where she was) and they had fallen on this strange scene: a huge Bendy dripping ink that attacked the Toons!

They watch, puzzled and intrigued, Penelope who dares to stand up to this demon who looks like Bendy and become at the same time his new prey.

« **PENELOPE! MON AMOUR !** » Pepé panics before he rages, unable to believe that he was scorned in this way. « I swear if you ever touch her, Bendy, I'll ...! »

« If I ever touch who? » the darling demon's voice asked.

All turn, surprised... to see the little Toon out of the back shop with Aiden on the shoulders, followed by the pair of TerryToons magpies. Eddie frowns and turns to the image still visible in Pandora's bubble. Even the devil girl has the impression of seeing double!

« Quel est-ce? » the skunk is astonished. « If you're here, ... then ... who ...? »

The little devil frowns and walks forward to see... and freezes seeing a duplicate of him (even though he is taller than him) dripping ink and terrifying ToonTown, attacking the helpless Toons.

« What is this joke? » Heckle wonders. « Bendy is here, next to us! »

« I think I'm starting to understand. » the human detective mumbles, drawing the Toons' gaze. « This Joey Drew seems to want to destroy Bendy's reputation no matter what. As a former director and animator, he can create Toons as much as he wants or corrupt. This Bendy », he concludes by pointing to the demon pursuing Penelope, « is an impostor who reinforces the legend that our Bendy is a demon! »

« **But it's a real scam!** » Pandora is indignant, furious to the point of having her face turning red.

« It's monstrous! » Ortensia is horrified.

« Joey really doesn't have a heart. » Boris raged. « If I put my fangs on him, I grind his head! »

« **Hey !** It won't help to kill Joey! » Jeckle indignantly closes the ears of his son now sitting on the bar.

« Jeckle is right. We have to show ToonTown that Bendy isn't that monster. » Mugman intervenes.

Suddenly, Bendy (who was watching the scene) suddenly freezes, alerting others who are watching him before watching the scene. The Inky Bendy then freezes and listens attentively (like his model) before smiling and leaving in another direction, ceasing to follow the black and white cat of the Looneys.

« Where is he going ? » Keffan wonders, trying to see where the demon is going.

« Oh no ... » Bendy suffocated, turning pale, drawing curious glances at him. « Not again… »

Without any explanation, the little black and white Toon runs out of the bar.

« **BENDY!** Where you go ? »

Aiden is worried by following him with the others.

Once outside, Bendy pours ink from his hand and jumps into the puddle before anyone can stop him.

« **Bendy? Bendy, come back!** » Boris calls, kneeling in front of the ink stain on the floor.

« Where is he ? » Heckle wonders.

« He travels like that to go faster without being seen. » the chick explains. « But I don't know what took him. »

Eddie thinks and then turns to the little sister of the SillyVision star.

« Pandora? Can you see where the Demon is going? »

« Um ... I think… »

She created another bubble in her hands and a blue smoke appears in it.

« Show me the Demon, please. »

The smoke is cloudy and the demon advancing in ToonTown appears. All look in the vision window of the little devil girl... and freeze recognizing where he is going.

« He goes to Felix the Cat! » Ortensia suffocates.

Everyone knows that Felix could defend himself and keep his heart, just like his wife Kitty... but there have been vulnerable beings in this house for a short time. And Boris immediately understands that Bendy had gone to protect them, without worrying for a moment about the danger that this represents.

* * *

In his house, Felix is on the lookout, especially considering the screams he heard earlier... when he hears a strange noise. Worried, he goes back to the room where Kitty and their three little ones are. The white cat calmly cleans her babies (having a little trouble with her little Alicia) when her husband enters.

« Are you all right, Felix? » she asks, straightening up, hugging her kittens against her.

« I don't know. But it's better to be careful. »

Without further explanation, the black cat slips close to his wife and gives a small lick to each of the little ones. While the little kitty girl meows trying to sit up on her tiny paws, her two brothers Deeho and Rubik curl up against their mom. Both parents watch their babies still blind. They would soon open their eyes now but, given what was happening in ToonTown, they hoped that everything would be done in time for their children to see the world as wonderful as it normally is.

* * *

Suddenly, a growl makes the parents startle and Felix starts to make the big back while standing over his little ones while Kitty growls, furious, hiding her babies with her paw. Both are staring at the door, ready to attack whoever will cross it... when someone destroys the wall. To the horror of the parents, an ink-covered monster resembling Bendy enters their room with a sneer.

« _**Give me the kittens!**_ » he said in a deep, resonant voice in his throat.

« Our little ones!? » Kitty is horrified.

« **NEVER ! Go back from where you come from, Demon!** » Felix yells.

The cat has a big back while standing in front of his wife and his cubs, and when Inky Bendy goes towards them smiling like a maniac, he falls on him. Meowing furiously, he scratches and bites the creature who struggles to get rid of the troublemaker. Kitty takes advantage of the distraction to hide her kittens under the bed then she leaps into the battle, scratching the back of the monster. He screams in pain but his massive body is also much more powerful. With a simple hip movement, he sends the cat mom behind him, rolling her in the rubble of the wall.

« **KITTY!** » Felix is panicking.

Bendy-Demon takes advantage of the distraction to catch the black feline and chuckles by casting him carelessly into the rubble. The cat bangs violently against a fragment of wall and finds himself breathless.

« _**You're lucky I'm not here for you, flea-bags.**_ » the creature sneers.

Since the parents' threat is now zero, he goes to the bed and throws it out the window. The kittens still blind mew by feeling the danger and not the protection of their mother. She returns to her but her head turns too much for her to get up.

« **My babies !** » she cries, unable to go help them.

But Inky Bendy doesn't have time to raise his dripping hand to catch the little ones that a little black and white being enters the room by the broken window while burning and violently strikes the demon in the face of a big blow of foot. The shock is such that the creature falls to the ground and, when he stands up, he is surprised (like cat parents) to see the TRUE Bendy facing him, placing himself above the little ones, growling.

* * *

Penelope arrives in turn, panicked when she realized that the monster had stopped following her to go to Felix,... and is frozen in surprise at seeing two Bendy: an inky and a normal who protects the kittens. She remains dumbfounded a few moments... then runs to meet Felix and Kitty.

« But what is going on here ? » she asks ... when Bendy throws himself on the demon that looks like him.

Furious, he bites a horn, making the creature roar pain, and claws his face with his nails and tail (now sharp as a sword). He leaps away from the monster and lands near the parents.

« Everything is fine ? » he asks.

The three Toons are surprised by his soft voice but they nod their heads... when Pepé's soul (which pops out of the window at the great shock of Penelope) screams:

« **BENDY! LOOK OUT!** »

The little devil takes a blow to the side that throws him against a wall... but before his opponent can give him the coup de grace, another soul (Boris) emerges and bites the Inky neck, making him roar away from Bendy who can then get up to approach the kittens meowing, panicked by the noise.

« Hush ... everything's fine, my darlings... Boris and I, we'll save you. All is well… » the little devil whispers, covering them with a light cloth so that they aren't cold.

Now sure that the little ones have nothing, he returns to the fight. Although surprised, Felix can't sit idly by while his cubs are in danger. Leaving Kitty (still weak from the birth of his kittens and the blow that the monster gave him) with Penelope, the black cat starts the battle, claws forward.

* * *

The screaming and the noises of battle prompted the patrol of the neighborhood that comes then with weapons full of solvents and diluents, followed by those who follow the order of the Great Council to avoid the massacre... but they are all surprised by see two Bendy (a small and a monstrous), Felix and a wolf soul fight. Not to mention that the member of the Great Council is fighting alongside little Bendy!

« What's going on here? » Elmer the Hunter mumbled as he watched the fighters incredulously.

Which one is the real Bendy? And who was the other? Cuphead is totally lost even though his eyes refuse to let go of the smaller Toons and his heart (broken by the loss of his brother) starts beating again by telling him that this little guy is the real Bendy while this vile creature was the killer of his brother.

Eddie, accompanied by souls and children (as well as Heckle and Jeckle), arrives at the scene. The twenty or so present Toons turn to him and Mickey Mouse asks him:

« Mr Valiant! What does it mean ? Which is the real Bendy? »

« I think it's the one who's helped by Boris. » the detective smiled.

« Who is Boris? » Bugs asks who (like Mickey) was against the kill.

« It's the transparent wolf. » Aiden answers.

« **GO ON, BORIS! EAT HIS HEAD! SHOW HIM WHO IS THE BOSS!** » Candice yells, surprising everyone by the volume that the little bunny could take.

« **SIGH ON THE NECK, BENDY! THE NECK ! YOU'RE THE PARALYSIS WITHOUT PROBLEM IF YOU TOUCH THE VEIN OF THE NECK!** » Keffan yells in his turn.

But when he sees the shocked looks of the 'heads' of Disney and Looneys, the kitten blushes, ashamed.

« Um ... It's Papa Cat who gave me this tip ... »

Roger arrives in his turn (to help but especially because he heard the voice of his beloved little daughter) and freezes, forbidden. He can't believe what his eyes see.

* * *

Bendy jumps on the demon and puts his tail in his neck like a dagger while Boris bites it grunting, spitting out the ink he tears out of this distorted body, and Felix claws it as deeply as possible while burning. But while they seem to have the advantage, the demon suddenly makes a sudden movement of his body, making Boris fall to the ground while Felix clings as much as he can with his claw ... but Bendy finds himself sent in the air ! Gravity then makes him fall right to the open mouth of the devil! In the emergency, the little Pandora jumps into the battle, catches the horns of the demon and pulls as hard as she can, making it miss her brother who falls heavily to the ground in a 'phew'. She goes on to keep the monster from attacking her family... when she feels herself go back, falling to the ground, the horns still in her hands. Except that, to her great disgust, she also holds the whole face of the demon.

All suffocate with horror at seeing that this face is only a mask and that being disguised is a Human! A human that everyone recognizes, especially the three Toons of SillyVision, to their horror: Joey Drew!

« You!? » Bendy suffocates. « **So it's you!** » he suddenly rages, starting to dribble.

« **Get out of my way !** » Joey grumbles, violently striking the imp rolling on the floor.

With a big kick of his imposing body of ink (which he strangely manages for a real Human), he sends Boris and Felix crashing against the present Toons and, with a monumental slap, pushes Pandora who lands on the two Toons pussies cats. Drew plants his hand in the ground, pulling out the bars of ink that keep the Toons out (to their shock because no humans could do that) and he reaches out to the kittens who meow, calling for help. These cries frighten Felix who is unable to reach them and break the heart of Bendy who stands up suddenly (as struck by lightning) before he runs to the little ones. He then jumped between them and Joey shouting:

« **NOT THIS TIME !** »

Joey's hand hits Bendy and crushes him violently against the floor, right where the kittens were. Large splashes of ink are then projected into the room under the bestial grunts of the Human and the cries of horror of the cat mother. As if this scream had woken them up, all the Toons armed with solvent guns fire on the Demonic Man through the ink bars even though they aren't too sure of the effect it could have on him. To their surprise, Joey starts screaming as if he is injured and running away.

* * *

The majority of the Toons Patrol chase after him as the others scramble to clear the ink that prevents them from going to help their friends while Felix forces himself to pass to join his wife. Kitty bursts into tears in her husband's arms who restrains himself from crying to stay strong in front of her but his body trembles with silent sobs. Aiden throws himself on his parents' necks, starting to mourn the loss of his friend, while Boris rushes to the inkstand that seems to be all that remains of Bendy. Candice also seems to be about to cry... when she feels a familiar hand on her shoulder. She turns around and sees her father. Roger seems sad when a few days ago, he would have been the first to celebrate such an event.

« Honey ... I ... » he begins...

but Candice jumped to his neck, happy to finally be able to tighten her dad in her arms.

Pandora rushes to the ink spot where Boris stands, who seems to be about to cry ... when she freezes.

« **QUICK ! Someone come to help me!** » she screams, dipping her hands in the ink.

Boris is surprised but plunges his hands in the ink ... when he freezes.

« **BENDY IS HERE ! He is alive !** » he shouts to alert others.

As the kids smile of joy, Heckle, Roger and Bugs rush past the two SillyVision and plunge their hand into the ink. Heckle feels Bendy's shoulders, Bugs his legs and Roger his head. In one and the same movement, the Toons and the soul take the necessary impetus to get the dancing demon out of the puddle. Bendy is alive but rolling in a fetal position. They put him on the ground but the little one doesn't move, surely frightened by this unexpected face-to-face with his former executioner.

* * *

« Bendy, everything's fine, Joey's gone... » Boris whispered, stroking his head before giving him a quick lick on the top of his head.

Bendy straightens his head, surprised to see himself intact, then he slowly stands up, holding something tenderly. Aiden, Keffan and Candice run to him and hug him.

« **BENDY! You are alive !** » the chick squeals happily.

« **You're too strong, Bendy! You survived this super strong shot!** » the kitten smiles.

« **You're a killer, Bendy!** » Candice exclaims ... before rectifying herself. « Well... not a killer in the murderous sense! A killer in this sense that you are super **super** strong ! »

The dancing demon smiles, amused by the chatter of the little ones... when little meows come out of what he's holding. All are frozen, forbidden... and Bendy slowly spreads the sheet he holds, revealing three small black and white heads.

The kittens of Felix and Kitty, alive!

Little Alicia starts to meow trying to sit up... then, to the wonder of all, she opens her eyes. Her brothers start sniffing the air and then Rubik opens his eyes, quickly imitating by Deeho. The three kittens blink for the first time under Bendy's subjugated and tender eyes... and when their vision is clear, all three of them fix the demon. Deeho frowns and leans his head as Alicia raises her paw to his face, meowing. Bendy laughs but gently pushes the tiny paw.

« No no, my kittens. I am not your mom even though I would have loved it. I'll find her for you. » he said softly as he sat up.

He watches the room carefully... before seeing the couple of cats standing out. In their grief, they didn't pay attention to what had happened. Smiling, Bendy holds the babies firmly so that they don't fall and advance to the bereaved couple.

« Excuse me ... Mr. Felix? ... Mrs. Kitty?... » he said softly.

The cat and his wife turn around... and freeze seeing the little balls of fur that wiggle in the arms of the Dancing Demon and meow when discovering the world for the first time. The cat mother seems to be about to cry recognizing them. Bendy smiles and tends the kittens saying:

« I think these babies are yours. »

Kitty smiles as she picks up the blanket that contains her three little ones. The kittens look at her, surprised, but they quickly recognize her scent and start to smile, meowing happily. Alicia is the first to get up and she puts her paw on the muzzle of her mom who laughs with pure happiness before giving her a little lick on the face. Felix smiles and caresses the little heads of his children before turning to Bendy. Now that he is facing the supposed demon and seeing what he has done, he knows that everything he was told about him was wrong.

« Thank you... » he smiled sincerely.

Bendy shrugs with a small smile.

* * *

But the moment of peace is stopped by a projectile that Bendy misses by little. Cuphead enters with his fists irradiated with blue on the demon who goes back to the walls, terrified and beginning to dribble. Bugs jump then and catch the kid.

« Cuphead! Stop ! » the rabbit is indignant.

« Have you lost your mind? » Felix rages, grabbing the cup-shaped head Toon's arm.

« **I only get rid of the problem!** » the little one gasps, pulling his arms away from the cat's grip, still furious.

His back-story already made him very suspicious of the Devil and his ''envoys'' but the loss of his brother Mugman made him even more eager to do justice. Charging his fists and ignoring his heart that is tightening by telling him he is wrong, he aims Bendy and fires his projectiles again. The great agility of the dancing demon allows him to escape in a few leaps and, under the cries of children and meowing kittens, he fled.

The Toons of the various patrols start to chase him away while those who attended the rescue of the babies try to stop them. But while Bendy is reluctant to use a well of ink to escape, a huge white mass with black contours blocks the way. Distraught, he raises his head to see Gertie wrapping her tail in a protective way around him. She seems to smile at him like a mom would do to her child.

The Toons who hunted the ''demon'' applaud the dinosaur before bowing to her.

« Bravo Gertie! » Sam the pirate of Looneys congratulates advancing. « Now it only remains to shoot him between the two eyes! »

« **NO WAY !** » the mastodon declares with a loud voice that makes the air tremble.

All are frozen and many look at her as if she was crazy. Bendy looks at Gertie without understanding. Why was she helping him?

« Say so, my dear. We all have respect for you but here we have a demon to exterminate! » the little redhead is annoyed. « So you're nice and you're moving away! »

« I stay here, where I am! Did you look at yourself? It looks like Doom against the Tunmans! »

A deathly silence then spreads in the crowd. Even though Bendy doesn't understand the hint of this person, he seemed to be a horrible person that all the Toons feared ... like him with Joey.

The dinosaur looks down at him to see a little Toon with a broken child's soul who must have grown up too fast. In fact, he looks like every Toon who has lost a loved one because of this monster. Cuphead would like to believe her but he saw his brother being killed by Bendy.

« **HE KILLED OUR FRIENDS, OUR FAMILIES ! WE ARE ONLY ASKING REVENGE!** » he is angry when he feels a light hand like a breeze resting on his shoulder.

« Except that Hatred only breeds Hatred, Cupy ... » a voice he knows well mumbles.

He freezes at this voice and turns to face his brother. Certainly, he is transparent and the trace of his heart is still on his chest but he is alive ... or almost.

« Mugy ...? » he suffocates.

His brother smiled at him and the elder trembled, leaving tears of joy running down his cheeks. No longer waiting, he squeezes his brother's soul in his arms, crying with joy.

* * *

One by one, all souls appear before their fellows. Oswald runs to hug his beloved Ortensia with their children, the 6 remaining Dwarves find their brother, the Looneys are delighted to see theirs '' alive '' (especially Penelope who finds her dear Pepé). Bendy watches it behind Gertie's tail and smiles, feeling his heart start beating again. Finally, despite all the darkness of the situation, happiness seemed to come back to ToonTown!

« What happened to you? » Felix questions by seeing the souls Toons who haven't passed on the other side.

« It's Joey! » Happy is indignant.

« Yes, this human who claims to want to help us! » another soul says.

All the Toons are indignant, especially those who hunt Bendy. How was that possible? He was a human!

« But it's a human! He can not control the ink! » Penelope reminds. « ... unless he is Tunman! »

« **Trivia!** You have bladders for lanterns! » Sam the pirate is outraged. « Who says that it's not one of his clones* that this demon I am pointing sent for you, surrounded you so deeply? And, of course, that he holds a human prisoner in his viscous ink !? »

« You didn't see what we saw Sam! » Roger reasoned. « He defended Felix's kittens! »

« **And at Halloween, at the SillyVision studio? It was Joey Drew, maybe?** » the little redhead is raging.

Candice, Keffan and Aiden look at each other, embarrassed... before whistling innocently. All lower their eyes to them and, although shameful, the small Tunman prefers to confess.

« I may have sort of made it as if the studio was haunted by moving ink, boards and a few cutout... and turning on the machine... »

Gandy and SourPuss are staring at their kitten, slightly disappointed by the rascally he's done them... when Jessica approaches.

Seeing that the bimbo doesn't frighten her little protégé, Gertie concludes that she is on their side. Pulling away, she allows the redhead to take Bendy in her arms. All are surprised (especially Roger) but Jessica turns to them, holding the dancing demon as a child.

« You all know that we, the Toons, cannot lie. Our eyes speak for us. Dare to look at this little demon in the eyes and tell me if you see a monster! » she says.

She places Bendy in front of Cuphead (without knowing what the Toon feels for the demon) and waits for his judgment... but Cuphead closes his eyes, feeling himself blushing while facing the Toon he has fallen in love with. Even if Felix is intrigued by this reaction, he enjoys the calm to make an announcement.

« **Your attention please !** » he cries, raising his arms, drawing all eyes towards him. « **We now hold Bendy and, as stated in the decree, he will be entitled to a judgment like any of us!** »

The hunters scream, outraged, fighting verbally with those who wish to follow the decree ... when a gunshot sounds, stopping all discussion. All turn to the culprit who happens to be Eddie.

« You, the Toons, you fought for justice after Autoonomy, and you would deny one of you because of a rumor? » the Human is indignant. « Where are your proofs? The Grand Council is planned for this kind of situation and you can see that it is harmless. If that reassures you, lock him up until the trial! »

Bendy freezes but Aiden runs to grab his hand to calm him down.

« It's better like that, Bendy! But don't worry ! We will stay close to you! »

Before Bendy can say anything, two Looneys Toons Bulldogs (Hector and Marc-Antoine) grab the Dancing Demon by the arms and drag him to the Toons Prison. Hunters boo the demon who is dragged along calmly... when Sam the pirate growls catching Pandora's arm :

« And the damsel, what do we do with her? »

The Devil Girl bites him furiously when a Toon Gorilla catches her. Eddie is about to intervene... when Henry arrives and gets the Toon girl back.

« Sorry... » he mumbles, hugging the little one. « She was separated from her brother for 30 years so seeing him in prison doesn't make her happy. »

The little girl sulks while hugging Henry ... when Felix steps in:

« I'm sorry, but ... if you could keep her away from Bendy until the trial... »

« **NO BUT YOU ARE DREAMED!** » Pandy is indignant, but Boris silences her with one hand on her mouth.

« No problem. » Eddie promises. « We stay away from ToonTown until the trial. »

Souls and Humans then move away, still separating the Toons and their loved ones, but the worst is Bendy. While he was taken under the supervision of the council members (especially Gertie), his heart tightened as Boris moved away. The two soul mates look at each other one last time, knowing that they will only see each other again on the day of judgment.

* * *

 **HERE IS! Chapter 13 is finally finished :D**

 **Bendy has just saved Felix's babies, but unfortunately he is now a prisoner. How will his trial be? Will he be able to explain his situation to others or will fear judge him?**

 **Ah! Notified notifications ***

* The Missed One are my own invention. They are ''living'' Toons but whose birth has failed, making them extremely unstable. Their minds aren't clear so they wander in ToonTown and can be violent with other Toons, making them quite dangerous.

* in the original book « Who censored Roger Rabbit » (who inspired the movie) Toons can clone themself but the clone can't stay forever and disappears after some times.

 **That's it :) see you next time :D And don't forget to leave a comment!**


	15. Chapter 14: The Great Council

**Inked in Mystery**

* * *

 **Chapter 14 :** The Great Council

* * *

 **A big thank you again to Foxiso for the idea of the Big Council and all the descriptions :)**

* * *

Bendy is securely tied with special Toonproof ropes to prevent him from escaping before being placed in a cell in the custody of both bulldogs. The fear makes him tremble and ink dripping on his forehead and in his eyes but he is unable to send it back.

Crying, he lets himself dribble... when he feels a hand wipe his forehead. He sees Coyote who, as a Toonologist, had the right to visit the prisoners to add that to their file.

« We'll get you out of there. » the Looney promises in a low voice because he wasn't entitled to the bias. « We gather the Toons and Humans proofs. Everything will be ready for the trial. »

The scared demon nodded (even though tears of fear continued to run down his cheeks) and Coyote came out pretending to take notes.

Bendy remains quiet for a few moments and then begins to hum slowly, intriguing the Toons in prison (mainly villains put there to be calmed and guards) The song is unknown to them ... and for good reason! She had long since been forgotten, as was her original performer: Alice Angel.

« La dadada da da da... la dadada da da... »*

Tears run down his cheeks as he imagines his friend singing her lullaby to her cherub brothers... and when Henry was gone, Alice had learned it from Bendy. They spent hours singing it both while dancing on the melody. Leaving his mind drifting, the dancing demon starts to smile despite his tears seeing himself dancing with Alice, Boris and Pandora, all smiling, all happy, all alive... but the image of Joey returns to him in mind. Trembling and wanting to chase this monster from his head, he continues to hum, his sad song missing to make the guards cry.

* * *

The day of the trial arrived. All the Toons moved to the Toon Assembly which was built on a model of Greek theater/Colosseum, facing the podium with roof covered in half sphere and pedestals that went from the smallest to the largest.

Public places worked as follows:

In the first places must settle the Toon of small size, the relatives of the accused and those who can help either in favor or against the accused.

The middle squares were occupied by medium-sized and human-sized Toons.

And the places behind were the places made for big or giant Toons.

* * *

All the Toons placed themselves in their respective places and it began to heckle on the advice. Then the silence came when PointDexter introduced the members of the Grand Council Toons one by one! Each of them advanced to their respective pedestals. The oldest (Koko, Betty and Felix) had the tallest columns because they were older and therefore the most important voices. Of course, the humanoids were entitled to the platform while the feline had to rely on his claws to climb the column.

« I swear, I'll ask to replace his columns with desks! » the cat in ink growl when he arrives at the top of his column.

He lies down on his side, breathless, while Betty and Koko sit right on their column. The bimbo in black and white grins a little laugh seeing the cat breathless.

Then came Mickey and Porky who climbed their smaller columns, one on the side of Koko and Betty face to face with Felix, and the other next to Felix. Both had also been entitled to a platform to raise the column because of their more human design. The next was Woody Woodpecker who sat directly on the smaller column so closer to the ground that he just need to pull a little on the feathers of his tail to lift his butt at the column. And, finally, Gertie arrived standing between Felix and Koko. Everyone bows when the Jurassic behemoth enters the podium.

« May we bring the one who assembles us again! » Gertie orders.

The doors squeak, forcing everyone to look at them, and Hector and Marc-Antoine enter, holding Bendy (which looks tiny between the two stout ones) by the arms. The little demon is paralyzed but, as soon as he appears, many Toons booed furiously, screaming to be killed on the field, shouting justice for their 'Dead'... but a strong paw Gertie on the ground resonates in the building and stops the screamings. If there is anything that everyone fears, it is the anger of their eldest.

* * *

The two bulldogs lead the little demon up to the pillar of the accused and sitting down. To be sure that he doesn't escape thanks to his ink (but especially to reassure others who see him as a danger), for the first time in the history of the Assembly, they attach the little accused with Toonproof ropes.

« Sorry, little guy. » Marc-Antoine mumbles, clutching the knot, sorry to see how frightened the little Toon is, about to cry.

Bendy turns to the assembly that judges him... when he sees all his friends in the front row, especially the Humans... and Boris. The wolf gives him a small encouraging smile even if he isn't too sure of how things are going to be. The other souls aren't there and that intrigues Bendy. Where were they all? Had they abandoned him to his sad fate?

« Bendy! » Gertie's loud voice suddenly exclaims, startling the demon. « You were called here by yours because you would have disturbed the peace in ToonTown. So we open this trial to discuss! » she announces.

Bendy swallows, especially worried because he knows the majority are against him.

« Bring Bendy's file! » Felix orders.

Coyote (in the front row seat, much to the shock of many) gets up and brings the famous file. Except to their surprise, the Looney canine holds two files: an old and a red one.

« W- w- w- what is th- th- th- this file ab -ab- ab- about? » Porky is surprised to see the Toonologist put both documents in front of Gertie.

« In order to remain impartial, I separated the new documents discovered during new research on the accused. » he explains before handing out the smallest and oldest file. « This is the Bendy's file as everyone knows it. »

As a clerk, PointDexter runs back the small file and brings it to Gertie. All are surprised because no file was so small.

Despite her imposing size, it is with astonishing delicacy that the dinosaur recovers the tiny pile of documents between her teeth to pass it to Felix. The cat frowns as he feels how light the folder is when Bendy was considered a monster by all of them.

« How can one judge with so little? ... » he thinks, opening the file and starting to read it.

* * *

After a few moments of silence, he passes it to Porky, allowing the pig to lean over the file while he verifies the accuracy of the file data.

« So, you're Bendy the Dancing Demon, owned by SillyVision, studio run by Joey Drew? »

Bendy gets angry at the word 'owned' but nods. The idea of belonging to this human as if he were only a toy make him sick! But before Felix or Porky can continue their questions, Henry gets up.

« I want to make a change! Bendy no longer belongs to SillyVision! »

While all are frozen (especially the three Toons of the famous studio), the Human leaves his place and takes a paper out of his pocket. The leaflet carefully, he states:

« Since yesterday precisely 3:42 pm, Bendy the Dancing Demon as well as Boris the Wolf and Pandora Devil belong to me, copyrights never having been filed by Joey Drew! »*

As Pandora smiles, ecstatic, Boris and Bendy are stunned. Joey had never put any rights on them? He still lied to them, saying they belonged to him! All the Toons whispering to each other while PointDexter retrieves the human document. Adjusting his big glasses, he checks the authenticity of the document. He looks at Henry over the frames of his glasses, intrigued,... then he says:

« It's a real… »

« **YES !** » Pandora exclaims happily, happy to no longer belong to this hellish studio.

Henry smiled as he turned to the others, nodding at Eddie. Bendy understands that it was the detective who had helped his animator to obtain his copyrights. It made him the legal guardian of Bendy! Him and not Joey!

Felix understands the manipulation behind this request (although he is sure that Henry saw it more like adopting a child) but keeping a neutral air, he says:

« Good ! This change must be added to the file! »

Being the last to read the file, Betty handed the documents to PointDexter, allowing the little assistant to add a copy of Henry's official paper.

« That will save us from having to go get Joey Drew. » Felix sighs, still disturbed by what happened at his home.

And to make sure the monster wouldn't come back, he'd put Kitty and their kittens in the debate room just behind them, guarded by sentries. At least he was sure he could come in time if ever... but he had to admit it: Joey Drew's revelation beneath that mass of ink had disturbed him.

« And what's in this new file? » Betty asks under Koko's nods.

« New research which allows me to prove to you, honorable members of the Great Council, and to you, Toons of all kinds, that the accused here present is indeed innocent since the beginning of this tragic affair which lasts for 30 years. » Wile E. Coyote says.

Skeptics booed the words of Looney's canine but he ignores them.

« May I ask the honorable members if I can pass you a very interesting audio track that proves my statements and those of the accused? »

Felix and the other members of the Grand Council look at each other before looking at Porky. The pig shrugs. He has known Coyote long enough to know he was someone he trusted. Woody doesn't seem convinced, slumped on his column, and shrugs. Koko and Betty look at each other and shake their heads, intrigued by this recording that could innocent Bendy. Mickey and Felix look at each other, the uncertain mouse but the cat determined to discover the truth, before nodding. The final voice is Gertie's... and the dinosaur nods with a big smile. The others screamed in scandal, Sam the Pirate daring even the insults of ''sold'', but the Coyote opened the file and released the tape recorder.

* * *

After a last look at Bendy, he sets him on the road... and the demon is freezing when he hears Boris's voice. Silence is made by hearing the tone of the voice.

 _« Howdy... I don't know who's listening to this message but... I'm Boris the Wolf of SillyVision. This is not a joke but a call for help. The growth of our studio seems to have made Joey crazy. »_

Council members frown, even Woody. This recording seemed to accuse Joey Drew ... but to accuse him of what? All listen attentively.

 _« It's been a few weeks since he's been doing weird tests on us, the Toons. It started with injections of water and other products... until he killed one of Alice's little brothers by injecting him thinner. »_

Hearing this, the whole room begins to suffocate with horror. What Human working with the Toons could be cruel enough or unconscious to inject thinner to a little Toon? Bendy freezes as he remembers that day. Joey was already responsible? Big tears run down his horrified face. The recorded voice trembles and we hear him sniff as if he is crying with his lover.

 _« Joey is a monster... I managed to preserve Bendy for the moment but I don't know how long I can protect him. Joey draws pentagrams on the floor and Sammy, the director of the music department, also seems to go crazy… »_

Felix stares at Bendy, seeing that he hears all this for the first time. Indeed, everything seemed to indicate that the little Toon had found himself facing much bigger than him...

 _« I don't know what's going on but I'm afraid that if Joey gets tired of us, he would attacking the other Toons, that he's going after ToonTown... I've often heard him accused Bendy for the many ink jobs all over the studio when I know it's him. »_

In the crowd, Cuphead looks down at the demon. Apparently, it wasn't the first time he had been a scapegoat to Joey Drew. And to say that because of what looks more like a rumor or a plot, he had almost killed an innocent Toon. And not just any Toon! The Toon he loved!

 _« Luckily the others love Bendy and don't scold him because he wouldn't understand... Henry says he wants to leave and take us with him, but I'm afraid Joey will stop him and pick on Bendy. »_

Pandora smiles, hugging her 'father'. At least now, Henry had kept his promise and Joey couldn't do something again it. All startle when a sound of broken glass echoes on the tape and Alice's voice sounds, suffocating Bendy. She too knew? All this time, Boris and she protected him from Joey without him knowing?

 _« Boris quickly! That's Joey! »_

 _« Run to hide, Alice! ... Whoever you are, help us! Joey Drew is lying to us! He is dangerous ! He must be stopped for the sake of all the Toons! »_

* * *

Coyote stops the tape after the others hear the hateful screams of the Human being choked by a door.

« I call to testify Boris the wolf! » Wile said without turning to the wolf who was stared at by everyone.

He swallowed discreetly as he got up from his seat and went to the center next to Bendy, in front of the members of the Grand Council. PointDexter approaches and extends the Big Book of Toons Laws while Gertie asks in a strict tone:

« Boris the Wolf, elder and head of all the Toons of SillyVision! Do you swear to answer the interrogation with the truth and nothing but the truth before the accused, the members of the Grand Council and the Toons here? »

« I swear. » Boris says honestly.

Finally, the other Looney canine turns to him.

« Boris, do you swear the accuracy of your statements recorded on this audio tape? »

Boris remains forbidden for a few seconds, looks at his transparent body, then, showing him with a gesture of his hand, he says:

« Am I not the living proof, if I dare to say? »

« Please answer the question, Boris. » Gertie declares calmly.

« You have heard and you see me! I didn't lie when I recorded that! » the wolf gets upset. « I was only trying to help you! »

« **LIAR !** » someone shouts.

The other Toons start screaming scandal! How could we swallow something so foolish!? A human who attacks Toons? Toons who belong to him? It's true that Humans could be cruel to the Toons, like Charles Mintz with Oswald or R. K. Maroon who had been manipulated by Doom, to the point of letting one of his stars be accused of the murder of Marvin Acme. But the one to have done the worst horrors to Toons and Tunmans was himself a Toon (even if his true identity was never discovered).

Seeing that the situation gets worse, Eddie disappears discreetly under the intrigued look of the Rabbit family.

* * *

The members of the Great Council may call for silence, the rage of other Toons can't be contained anymore. Bendy and Boris get scared, seeing that some are about to jump on them to kill the Dancing Demon... when shots are fired, making everyone jump. Everything turns to see Eddie come back with a bag on his back, a human weapon (so harmless to the Toons) in his hand.

Sighing, he advances towards the column where the small accused is.

« Decidedly, it becomes usual to shoot to be heard. » he sighs when he arrives at the center of the Assembly. « And you, the Toons, answer me seriously. That's innocent maybe? »

He puts the bag on the floor, opens it and, with a quick gesture, empties its contents. All Toons start screaming in horror at seeing the mutilated body of the wolf and the parents hurry to hide the eyes of their children (Donald, Daisy and Scrooge aren't too many to cover the eyes of the nephews of the duck). Even Gertie is distraught when she has already seen horrible things in her Jurassic dinosaur back-story. Felix turns to Bendy to see the little Demon trembled when he sees the body of his friend and lover. His eyes fill with tears. Even if Eddie is bothered, he says pointing Bendy:

« Do you think he would react like that if he was responsible? »

Everyone looks at each other before looking at the little Toon. Boris is doing everything he can to not run to calm his darling devil, but he knows the Toons must see that.

Bendy stares at Boris's corpse, the pupils narrowed to the point that his eyes appear to be only two small dots on his white face, the ink of his body flowing between the ropes and on his face. The laughter and face of Joey's sick man come back into his memory, the images of his nightmares where his new friends ended up killed appear in flash before his eyes. His body becomes so unstable that the ropes pass through it and fall to the ground. He feels the energy of the SillyVision disaster that invades his body and Pandora panics seeing a pentagram that begins to emerge on the ground... but as the Toons prepare to stop the child thinking he is trying to use his magic to break free, Bendy then burst into tears, screaming:

« **I AM SORRY !** »

The silence is then in the room so the shock is great. Bendy doesn't care that they see him as weak. His heart seems to break in his chest and big black tears run down his cheeks. His body seems to be nothing more than a big mass of ink shaking with sobs that Bendy tries in vain to wipe. He trembles with grief, unable to bear the stress that reminds him so much of this horrible day when he lost his lover and their baby.

* * *

All the members of the Grand Council (as well as the Toons present) are surprised by this reaction of Bendy. All the evidence was to show that he was innocent and yet he seemed to blame himself for something.

« Bendy? ... » Betty asks gently (as a member of the Grand Council and Inky Toon). « Can you explain why you're sorry? »

Bendy sobs while standing up, stabilizing his body as much as he can but unable to hold back his tears.

« I have never been perfectly like others. » the dancing demon admits calmly. « If Henry hadn't considered me a living, I wouldn't even breathe now... I didn't breathe immediately after my creation, unlike the others. I was even declared ''stillborn''... but Henry didn't want to believe it. It was him who animated me. Without him, I would never have existed... but that might have avoided this mess ... and I'm sorry ... »

« You don't have to be sorry because of what a Human has done to you. » a voice then declares.

All froze recognizing the voice of Oswald's wife, Ortensia!

The soul of the cat appears next to the little demon and she kneels before him to hug him. All Disney Toons are shocked to see her there, 'alive' and on the demon side. Still holding the little one in tears, Ortensia looks up to the Members of the Great Council.

« Members of the Grand Council! I wish to ask you for permission to call all the souls of the victims of the monster who has passed for the accused. » she said in a tone worthy of a queen.

A tone that Minnie (as a fiancée of Disney's Face) envied him often. Mickey smiles and looks at the others. Everyone nods and, after Gertie's agreement, Ortensia turns to the stands. And there, to the shock of all but especially of Bendy, all the souls appear in the benches of the witnesses on the side of the defendant.

« Since I am the first soul after Boris to have been and asked to testify, can I start with what I have to say? » Ortensia asks to the important members.

And again, everyone looked at each other and approved and then permission was given by Gertie. The 'Sovereign' of Wasteland stands up and declares:

« When this monster tore my heart, I felt a great cold. In fact, I had the impression that a vise of ice encircled my heart. But when I regained consciousness, I saw how Bendy reacted to the crowd. It wasn't a monster but a frightened child I saw. And then, Pepé convinced me to help him. »

« P-P-P-Pepé? » Porky wonders, drawing all eyes to the skunk's soul.

« Yes, mes amis! I have... » the skunk begins before swallowing, closing the eyes and then starts again. « I knew Bendy when I helped les petits to see him again. » the Looney confesses.

Penelope and the parents froze, understanding how the kids could help Bendy come to Halloween.

Biting his lip, the skunk explained:

« Bendy and I have things in common. We are victims of ''It's said''. So I decided to give him a chance and I let the littles one go to see him. I knew he had to come to Halloween and when that beast ripped my heart out, I realized it wasn't Bendy. »

« How can you be sure? » Mickey asks.

« Because a devil who dances on classical musique as soon as the musique sounds, it's not a monster! »

The Toons look at each other, intrigued. Bendy was named the 'Dancing Demon' but classical dance? Being the one of the assembly that was against Bendy from the beginning, Woody asks:

« What proves what you say? It's pretty vague what you tell us! »

« Listen, I know that sounds crazy about judging like a 'person' but... that beast didn't look as 'civilized' as he was! » the skunk says.

Bendy blushes slightly as some giggle, refusing to believe it.

« And you can tell me how he can be in two places at once? » the soul of Toon questions.

« What do you mean ? » Felix is astonished.

« After the Halloween disaster, Ortensia and I helped the petits to hide Bendy. He was hiding at Eddie Valiant's house. And, with each attack, we were with him! »

« Exactly! » Fauntleroy Fow intervenes. « From the moment we became souls, we were hiding at Mrs. Dolores' home while waiting for a solution. »

« And all the evidence found goes to Joey Drew! » Mugman exclaims.

« But what evidence? » Woody raged.

« The evidence there! » Coyote exclaims as he pulls out copies of Eddie's testimonials.

* * *

For several minutes, Coyote narrates the testimonies of each member of the studio. Going from the simple employee to the animator or doubler, all described a cold Joey with the Toons, who regarded them as mere objects and not living beings and who wanted a demon Bendy, thirsty for blood and power, but Bendy was everything but that.

As the testimonials are recited, everything seems to be turning in favor of Bendy (who is again sitting on the unauthorized column of the accused). Finally, after the testimony of the famous Wally, Gertie asks:

« Boris the Wolf! If all this is true, what do you know about Joey Drew's true intentions? »

Boris hesitates, not wanting Bendy to know about the director's madness ... but he sighs and says:

« He wants immortality. »

All frown without understanding.

« That's what he told me before tearing my heart out. » the Wolf said, shrugging his shoulders. « From what I understood, Joey persuaded himself that the Toons were like gods. All this because the majority of us live longer than the human average and we don't age in the same way. He almost spoke to me as one of those guys of the anti-Toons religious sect. »

« The Purgers? » Betty suffocates.

All tremble on hearing this name.

* * *

Long before Judge Doom, the Purgers were already frightening the Toons. These religious were still in the perspective of 'Father Creator' and refused anything that doesn't fit into this scheme live... and the Toons were for them the worst ignominy. If Joey Drew had a speech similar to theirs, he must have been so dangerous.

* * *

« Yeah, maybe. They didn't have a name the last time I saw them. » the Wolf responds with a shrug. « But in what he said to me, I understood that he intended to steal and use the Toons' hearts to find Immortality. »

« I have documents proving that! » Coyote says grabbing the pieces of paper that was with Boris' recording.

Gertie picks them up and hands them to Felix. The black cat begins to read them, intrigued by the satanic and alchemical symbols, but the inscription under Bendy's drawing disturbs him.

« Our portal to become Gods... »

While some chuckle at the idiocy of reasoning, Bendy freezes, finally understanding the interest of Joey for him during the SillyVision disaster and for the kittens of Felix.

« That's why... » he mumbles, drawing attention to himself.

« That's why? » Betty asks gently.

Bendy looks at her before looking at Boris and looks at the floor. He hesitated. Should he tell them?

« That's why ... he asked me ... he asked me to offer myself to him in exchange for keeping me alive to rule once become a god. » Bendy confesses.

The Members of the Grand Council and Boris freeze while fixing the demon... but as he is with the revelations, Bendy continues, trembling:

« Of course, I refused. That made him angry and he tried to touch me... so it was the same thing as at Halloween. I was furious because he killed Boris but... there was something else... » he begins, leaving tears overflowing from his eyes. « During the SillyVision disaster, ... I ... I wasn't alone... »

He puts his hands on his belly crying, shocking all the Toons present. Pandora freezes and begin crying. With all that had happened, she had completely forgotten the discussion they had had that famous morning... but the most shocked of all was Boris! The wolf approaches and looks Bendy straight in the eyes.

« Why didn't you tell me? »

« What's the point ? » the little demon is crying. « It didn't survive... Joey didn't know about his existence, but that didn't stop him from killing him. »

« Does that mean that the first Toon-born should have been born at SillyVision? » Mickey is horrified.

All are sad because a child remains a child. Even though he couldn't be born, his disappearance saddened the whole room, parents or guardians of children understanding the sadness that Bendy may have felt in losing his child who could have a great role in the history of ToonTown.

* * *

Suddenly, Felix realizes something.

« Bendy! Did Joey know about the unborn child? » he asks.

« No ! » the demon is horrified. « Other than my last animator, nobody knew about it. I didn't even have time to tell Boris, Pandora and... Alice... »

Bendy seems frozen in horror as he thinks about his friend and how she ended up drowning in ink. Without paying attention to the demon, Felix mumbles:

« That's better... because otherwise, I think he would have done something much worse. »

All turn to the feline member of the Grand Council, not understanding what he means. Feeling the eyes on him and standing up, the cat is explained, a thrill running through his fur just at the idea:

« I think I figured out why Joey did it to my little ones. According to the elements revealed during this trial, he seeks to obtain Immortality by recovering the hearts of the Toons. We, Toons, are 'immortal' until we are forgotten. But the Toons-born aren't subject to the same physical laws as us. They don't depend on the love of Humans like us. Can you imagine the gold mine that a Toon-born heart can represent for him? Especially if he is young! »

All refrain from screaming in horror, Toons-born parents clutching their children in their arms.

* * *

Bendy freezes, horrified! Candice, Aiden and even Keffan were all Toons-born! Perfect experiences for Joey! He realizes then that they were more in danger than him in the face of this patient! And to say that they had literally risked their skin for him when after losing his baby, Bendy had sworn to not risk any child and not break any family! Admittedly, he had attacked Keffan at their first meeting but it was out of prudence, to scare him! Instead, he had fraternized with them, and when Joey came back for him, he'd put all ToonTown and all the Toon-borns in danger!

« Children ... » the Dancing Demon suffocates, feeling tears of shame and sadness streaming down his cheeks.

Boris is surprised by what Bendy says, but before he can ask his lover what he has, Cuphead asks:

« But how can Joey Drew control the ink like a Toon? »

All look at each other. Indeed, Joey may have been director of studios, it wasn't possible that he could control the ink as can a Toon!

As the murmur resumes, Coyote reflects ... then he snaps his fingers.

« I think I have an explanation! » he said as he stepped forward. « We know from the evidence presented in this trial that Mr. Drew is seeking Immortality and that he thinks he can get it by stealing the hearts of the Toons, isn't it? »

« Indeed... » Felix recognizes. « And if he could, he would have already attacked the children to recover Toons-born hearts. »

« If we start from the premise that hearts are still intact as souls are still there, it means that Joey Drew has found another way to enjoy hearts to become Immortal. » Wile resumes. « So, we can imagine that, by using these hearts, he could have got Toons abilities, in the same way as a Tunman. »

« Do you think it's possible? » Betty asks.

« Ah, that would be the first case! » the Looney's canine said, shrugging his shoulders. « But that's the only explanation I see for explaining this almost Toon behavior. »

« Especially for someone who preaches killing for Bendy all over the rooftops, it's funny that he's at the absent subscriber, don't you think? » Woody mumbles, totally slumped on his column.

Everyone begins to indignant, very much in agreement with the woodpecker and again creating an annoying background noise. Felix rubs his forehead with a sigh.

« Fortunately, this kind of trial only happens when earthquakes happen. » does he think.

Suddenly, he jumps when he hears a great blow on the ground that silences everyone, out of fear but also out of respect for the one who made this noise: their oldest to all!

« Good ! We will now go to the vote! » Gertie says with a loud voice.

* * *

All rise from their seats, preparing to vote by show of hands (as is customary among the Toons). Bendy doesn't even face the assembly who judge him, his head bowed and his eyes staring into space as if he were lost in thought. It's Coyote who brings him back to the ground with a light pat on the shoulder. Although intrigued by the behavior of the accused, Felix stands up on his column and says in a loud voice:

« **Let those who think the accused Bendy is guilty raise their hands!** »

Bendy trembles, not daring to look behind him... Yet, eyes are exchanged, intersect, murmurs run through the room, but no one raises his hand. Boris feels relieved but Felix continues:

« **Let those who think the accused Bendy is innocent raise their hands!** »

Again, the hands don't seem to want to get up, as if they were unable to vote. Boris expects a void vote that will send Bendy to jail by caution... when the children raise their hands.

« We may be too young to vote but we know he is innocent! » Candice shouted, supported by her friends.

The wolf smiles even if their vote doesn't matter. Souls start to raise their hands... but like children, their status as victims doesn't allow them to vote.

Boris panics, fearing that Bendy won't survive another time in prison,... when Cuphead raises his hand. All are shocked because he had shown himself as one of the fiercest hunters but his heart and the elements presented convinced him that his eyes were deceived. Then, Bugs raises his hand, followed by Penelope then Oswald, Donald and his nephews, Yogi and BooBoo. One by one, all hands are up, some clamoring loudly « Bendy is innocent! ». Like a huge wave, all the Toons vote for the innocence of the darling devil!

After having the opinion of the Assembly, it is time for the Members of the Great Council to vote. Even if all the Toons agree, it was the voice of the Grand Council that counted the most! Standing up on their column, Betty and Koko look at each other and smile, shaking before the bimbo declares for both of them:

« Innocent! »

Porky gets up in his turn.

« I- I- I- I- Innocent! »

then Mickey declares while standing up:

« Innocent! »

Woody Woodpecker gets up, arms crossed. All hold their breath, waiting for his vote because he had proved throughout the trial that he remained convinced of Bendy's guilt. He remains silent a few moments ... then, pushing his famous woodpecker laugh, he says:

« Innocent! »

All applaud the declaration of the woodpecker. His voice may not be the most important of the Grand Council, but it was important. Finally, comes the moment of the vote of the two oldest toons of ToonTown: Felix and Gertie! One voice against them and Bendy could go back to jail. Felix stands up on his column and says:

« Innocent! »

Then, it's Gertie's turn! Bendy shakes as he feels the dinosaur's eyes on him. She lowers herself until her eyes are in those of the dancing demon. All fear her opinion... but the mastodon smiles and stands up, proclaiming:

« Bendy is innocent without a shadow of doubt! »

The whole assembly starts screaming with joy, laughing and applauding. Pandora screams, wild with joy, and jumps on Henry's neck before running to meet Boris who stands right near Bendy, relieved and happy.

* * *

Bendy is terrified to see Marc-Antoine the bulldog remove his ropes. His heart beats like crazy when he sees the Toons soften on his story and raise his hand to proclaim him innocent and then cheer his innocence! How was that possible? He could only dream! Joey did everything they could to hate him... Like any Toon in this kind of situation that cannot be explained to him, he starts singing through the cheering crowd cheering:

 _What's happening to me?_

 _My heart is pounding so fast..._

Boris smiled as he heard Bendy's voice. A voice that came from the heart, as when he lets his emotions express himself through singing, one of the things he loves most in the world with dance. Feeling the same sensation as his young lover, the wolf joins him in his song even if he does not dare to join him again.

 _What sort of place it this?_

 _Where we're together at last._

Aiden, Candice and Keffan approach them with a smile and, almost like little angels, sing:

 _Where our misgivings are past_

 _And we're together at last!_

Pandora approaches in her turn and, holding Bendy by the shoulders, she takes again after the children:

 _Here we are, nearly strangers_

 _From two worlds that have rarely met_

 _Now I'm asking if you will let me_

 _Come with you!_

With the agreement of the members of the Grand Council (who come down from their columns to join the other Toons), Boris now has the right to approach his dear demon and embrace him under the look of others. Bendy instinctively hugs him, but the wolf pulls him aside and, with one hand on the demon's shoulder, forces the little Toon to look him straight in the eye.

 _Though our lives are tattered and torn_

 _All I'm feeling now is reborn_

 _I must be…._

 _In a Place of Miracles!_

Candice then jumped up, landing on Bendy's back with a big smile as only the Toons know how to do.

 _Where the blind can see!_

Pandora and Boris resume looking around them:

 _In a Place of Miracles!_

Keffan approaches them and takes their hands smiling:

 _Love can work its alchemy!_

Aiden and Candice join their friend Tunman and sing around the Toons of SillyVision:

 _The devil so friendly_

 _With a Wolf in an embrace_

 _In a Place of Miracles!_

* * *

While other adults cheer on the Council's decision, Bugs smiles as he sees the joy come back through the kids... but when he turns to Bendy, he's surprised to see the dancing demon apart. Instead of celebrating his victory with the others, he is alone, his arms wrapped around him nervously and big tears running down his cheeks.

« Hey what's that sad look? » he exclaims as he joins the little one, drawing all the attention to them. « You are at ToonTown! What is the idiot who made you cry? »

Bendy remains frozen watching the young Looneys' leader... then he closes his eyes, shaking.

« I don't deserve all that... » he sobs.

All are surprised. There was all the evidence that the Demon was a victim and not a monster but a real Toon! A Toon like them and therefore deserving the same justice! Even Bugs (Dispatcher specialist) is unable to answer so much he is shocked.

The dark air, the devil sings softly, tears falling from his eyes:

 _I knew I'd never know_

 _That warm and loving glow_

 _Though I might wish with all my might_

 _No ink as hideous as my ink_

 _Was ever meant for Heaven's light!_

Pandora freezes, horrified! It seemed like Joey's brainwashing had finally worked on his brother. She then runs to her eldest and hugs him, trying to convince him that he is wrong.

 _All this time, I've been certain_

 _That my life would be spent alone_

 _And what's more, I've pretended_

 _Not to care…._

Bendy looks away as if to avoid seeing his sister. The little one in tears cannot believe it.

 _This time, it's time, I've learned_

 _No love will be returned_

 _To one who was born to be alone!_

 _And now I know there'll be_

 _No miracles for me!_

Aiden runs to Bendy to take his hands.

 _But now we're here beside you!_

Bendy pushes the chick's hands away, unable to stop the tears on his cheeks.

 _Better to have a heart of stone!_

Candice and Keffan join their magpie friend to try to reason the dancing demon.

 _Though we set out for lands unknown_

 _They're lands we'll share!_

Bendy pushes them back violently, screaming in tears:

 _That holds no hope for Heaven's light!_

The little demon then falls to his knees and cries. All this was just a dream! A dream that this sick man of Joey had slipped into his head to make him suffer. Give him everything he dreamed of and then make everything disappear! And that, the little Toon can't stand it!

Pandora feels her own tears invade her eyes. Shocked and shaking her head, she runs to her big brother.

« Bendy! You're wrong! Everything is true! » she exclaims, giving him a kiss on her cheek. « Big brother... it's not a dream... you're not a monster... everyone understands now... we're going to defeat Joey and get the hearts back... »

Bendy just looks away. How could he not be a monster when the chaos at ToonTown was his fault? Aiden is disgusted! Joey had really poisoned Bendy's thoughts, to the point of convincing him that he was really guilty despite the evidence of his innocence. Furious, the chick grabs his head with his little hands and declares, staring straight into his eyes:

« If you're a monster, Bendy... then I'm one too! »

This is the shock among the Toons... except Bugs who starts to smile at the little chick.

« Well said, kid. A real Toon! »

Approaching Bendy, he starts to sing softly so as not to scare the little Toon.

 _There's a place like this city_

 _There's a chance you may chance upon_

 _Where the true_

 _Hidden you is clear to see_

 _Where your secret self is revealed_

 _And your deepest wounds will be healed_

 _Forever!_

All the Toons look at each other and smile as they approach Bendy. At this moment, all hatred has disappeared to give way to hope to see their city as flourishing as before, as heavenly as before.

 _Will we reach a friendlier shore?_

 _Will we find a haven once more?_

 _Where we'll be_

 _In a place of miracles!_

Heckle smiled as he perched his son on his shoulders and caught his husband and friends Gandy and SourPuss, the jars holding his son in his arms.

 _Love will hold the key!_

Roger smiles as he looks at his daughter in his arms and his wife kneeling behind him.

 _To a new reality!_

The Toons unite, as formerly, only one by heart and joy, accepting Bendy as one of theirs.

 _In a place of miracles!_

Bendy looks at the whole assembly, the Toons who are singing and smiling at him, trying to bring him a smile, to prove to him that he has his place in ToonTown, that he was one of them.

 _Where's my place of miracles?_

Boris kneels in front of him and tightly holds him in his arms, kisses him delicately on the forehead then murmurs:

 _In a place_

All Toons smile as they surround Bendy, finally feeling hope return to ToonTown.

 _Of miracles!_

Bendy looks at them, visibly unconvinced... but he suddenly freezes as he puts his hand on his chest. His heart seems to be beating again as before, to the rhythm of Boris's heart had! The rhythm that made him happy! A sweet, calm rhythm! A smile of pure happiness illuminates Bendy's face. This time, he knows! He knows there is hope! If his broken heart had found that rhythm, then Boris and the others could be saved. Straightening and looking up with happiness and determination towards others, he says:

« It's time to prove to Joey that the Toons aren't toys! **Let's face him and recover the hearts of ours!** »

All begin to applaud and shout in accordance with the words of the dancing demon. It was time to face the Creator of Bendy and save theirs! This time it was Human vs. Toons!

* * *

 **VOILA: D Chapter 14 and Bendy's trial ends :) Thanks to Foxiso who helped me a lot with the Toons Assembly who is the creator of this idea. But after all, why the Toons wouldn't have the right to justice? :)**

 **The song at the end of the chapter is a mix of the two existing versions of this splendid song and translation thanks to Foxiso ... again;)**

 **Notifications rated ***

22* Song we hear at the end of the trailer of chapter 3 and the song of Alice

23* In USA, in the years 59-60, works created in the 1925s (like Bendy here) would fall into the public domain after 55 years without renewal. So, to allow Henry's adoption of Bendy, Joey shouldn't have copyrighted the studio's creations.

 **Here it is :D to the next :)**

 **And PS: don't forget to leave a little comment :)**


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